EL SEGUNDO, Calif., August 2 – Computer Sciences Corporation (NYSE: CSC) today announced that DVC LLC, a CSC company, has entered into a phase 1 clinical trial for its Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) vaccine candidate V3526.
The trial will evaluate the safety, tolerability and immunogenicity of the vaccine candidate in healthy volunteers between the ages of 18 and 40. Clinical testing is underway and will continue into 2006 at Northwest Kinetics Inc. in Tacoma, Wash. Contract research services for the single center open-label study will be provided by the Covalent Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CVGR), headquartered in Wayne, Penn.
VEE is a mosquito-borne viral disease that causes encephalitis in horses and humans. It is an important public health problem in Central and South America.
“In addition to its ability to cause human disease, particularly in the Southern hemisphere, VEE is considered a potential biological warfare threat agent,” said DVC Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Robert V. House. “The vaccine candidate DVC is testing for the Department of Defense Joint Vaccine Acquisition Program is intended to provide superior protection against VEE for the U.S. armed forces.”
The vaccine candidate was originally identified and developed by scientists working at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) in Fort Detrick, Md., and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill, N.C. Advanced development and manufacture of the vaccine candidate has been achieved by DVC, working as the prime systems contractor for the Joint Vaccine Acquisition Program (JVAP).
JVAP’s mission is to develop, produce and stockpile FDA-licensed vaccine products to protect the warfighter against biological warfare agents. JVAP consolidates Department of Defense efforts for the advanced development, testing, FDA licensing, production and storage of biological defense vaccines.
USAMRIID is the lead medical research laboratory for the U.S. Biological Defense Research Program, and plays a key role in national defense and in infectious disease research. The Institute's mission is to conduct basic and applied research on biological threats resulting in medical solutions (such as vaccines, drugs and diagnostics) to protect the warfighter. USAMRIID is a subordinate laboratory of the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command.
DVC is a biodefense contractor dedicated to the development and licensure of safe and efficacious biological products. DVC is part of CSC’s Enforcement, Security and Intelligence organization, which CSC created in 2001 to support programs enhancing U.S. security.
The safety and efficacy of this product in humans has not been established. This product is currently under clinical investigation and has not been licensed by the FDA.
About CSCFounded in 1959, Computer Sciences Corporation is a leading global information technology (IT) services company. CSC’s mission is to provide customers in industry and government with solutions crafted to meet their specific challenges and enable them to profit from the advanced use of technology.
With approximately 79,000 employees, CSC provides innovative solutions for customers around the world by applying leading technologies and CSC’s own advanced capabilities. These include systems design and integration; IT and business process outsourcing; applications software development; Web and application hosting; and management consulting. Headquartered in El Segundo, Calif., CSC reported revenue of $14.1 billion from continuing operations for the 12 months ended April 1, 2005. For more information, visit the company’s Web site at
www.csc.com.
