The United States Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA) is awarding a new contract in support of an experimental dengue vaccine trial to the State University of New York, Upstate Medical Center, Syracuse, NY (SUNY).
SUNY will provide testing services on blood samples collected from human volunteers enrolled in the vaccine trial being executed by the Army’s Medical Research and Material Command and co-development partner GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals (GSK).
Testing includes the use of a proteomics platform to identify unique protein signatures in volunteers who received various dengue vaccines as early markers of vaccine immunogenicity. Vaccine immunogenicity is a marker of how the vaccine influenced and prepared the recipient’s immune system to prevent infection or disease following natural exposure.
SUNY was cited as having unique subject matter expertise in utilization of proteomics to characterize host immune response in blood samples collected from individuals following acute dengue virus infection or vaccination with a tetravalent live attenuated dengue vaccine. Additionally GSK, the vaccine co-development partner and co-owner of the samples, endorsed SUNY as a preferred collaborator.
The estimated contract value is $133,000.