Soligenix, Inc. announced the publication of data demonstrating enhanced immunogenicity and rapid action of its anthrax vaccine, VeloThrax. VeloThrax employs a derivative of recombinant protective antigen, termed Dominant Negative Inhibitor (DNI), which is a candidate for inclusion in a next generation anthrax vaccine. The use of the Company's proprietary vaccine stabilization technology, ThermoVax, has been previously demonstrated to enhance the thermostability of VeloThrax, enabling distribution without cold chain requirements. In this work, the use of two adjuvants, aluminum hydroxide and Glycopyranoside Lipid A (GLA) in conjunction with ThermoVax, was demonstrated to further enhance the immunogenicity and rapid action of the vaccine. The recent development of a VeloThrax formulation containing both aluminum hydroxide and GLA has resulted in immune responses indicative of protection after no more than 2 administrations of the vaccine in a shortened (less than one month) vaccination regimen, in an animal model. These results are indicative of a vaccine that can be given to humans in an abbreviated regimen, compared to the currently available vaccine. Next generation anthrax vaccines have been targeting a shortened vaccination schedule with fewer vaccinations for both pre and post-exposure use.

Previous studies have also demonstrated the potential ability to combine the VeloThrax vaccine with Soligenix's RiVax (ricin toxin) vaccine. These studies were performed under the aegis of a $9.4 million cooperative grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) for the development of the ThermoVax technology.  The work was conducted by collaborators at the University of Colorado (including Drs. John Carpenter and Ted Randolph), the Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health (including Drs.

Nicolas J. Mantis and David Vance) and by the University of Kansas (including Drs. Russ Middaugh and David Volkin).