Poolbeg Pharma PLC said it has signed an exclusive licence agreement with University College Dublin’s knowledge transfer office for a prospective vaccine for Melioidosis.
The deal builds on the option agreement for the late-preclinical drug candidate, known as POLB 003, signed last December.
Melioidosis, also known as Whitmore’s Disease, is an infectious condition that can lead to fever, weight loss, stomach or chest pain, muscle or joint pain, headache, and seizures. There is no vaccine on the market to treat the illness.
“Melioidosis presents a growing threat to global health as an infectious disease with no approved vaccine and a high mortality rate,” said Poolbeg chief executive Jeremy Skillington in a statement.
“POLB 003 is being developed in line with our capital-light approach and represents a significant opportunity for Poolbeg. Combined with the Company's expertise in infectious diseases it provides the perfect combination to contribute to the global response to this unmet-medical need and potential to generate significant returns for our investors," he added.
POLB 003 was invented by Associate Professor Siobhán McClean of the UCD School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science.
As part of the December option agreement the company said it is continuing to evaluate five other potential vaccine candidates being developed by McClean and her team.