Chimerix’s President and CEO M. Michelle Berrey participated in a panel focused on North Carolina’s role in biodefense preparation at the recent “Medical, Biomedical and Biodefense: Support to the Warfighter Symposium.”
“In the event of a smallpox bioweapon event or accidental release, antiviral therapy would be an important element of our national response,” Berrey said at the event, held on June 7-8 in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. “We remain committed to the development of brincidofovir as a medical countermeasure to supplement smallpox vaccination, the first line of response following a potential bioweapon event with smallpox. Because vaccines must be administered prior to the emergence of clinical signs and symptoms, and may not be safe for millions of Americans with certain common skin conditions or compromised immune systems, brincidofovir has the potential to help fill this need.”
Brincidofovir, Chimerix’s lead product candidate, is in development for the treatment of smallpox under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Animal Rule, which allows for the conducting of efficacy studies in animal models for conditions that are not appropriate for study in human subjects.
Chimerix presented positive results from a pivotal study of the drug in the rabbit pox model for smallpox in February. In that study, 100 percent survival was demonstrated in animals that received the drug immediately after infection.
Chimerix is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering, developing and commercializing novel antivirals in areas of high unmet medical need.