BiondVax Pharmaceuticals Ltd. (NASDAQ: BVXV, TASE: BVXV) announced today that the National Authority for Technological Innovation (NATI), formerly known as the Office of the Chief Scientist, agreed to fund up to 40% of a NIS 3.6 million (US$920,000) project towards ongoing development of the Company's Universal Flu Vaccine.
Currently undergoing late Phase 2 clinical trials, BiondVax's vaccine has shown significantly increased effectiveness against multiple seasonal and pandemic flu strains when compared to today's existing flu vaccines. With today's grant approval, NATI has, since 2006, granted $5.5M to BiondVax. The non-dilutive grants are repayable from royalties generated from future sales of BiondVax's vaccine, once available on the market.
Ron Babecoff, CEO of BiondVax commented, "The continued support of our program by NATI represents a strong and ongoing vote of confidence in BiondVax and what we are aiming to achieve. They were impressed with the positive results from our five completed clinical trials to-date, and strongly support our current and planned activities."
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