Dutch biotechnology company Crucell N.V. has plans for the clinical development of its combination of two human monoclonal antibodies against rabies, discovered last year using the Company's MAbstract technology.

According to a company release, Crucell's discovery offers the potential for an innovative and potent replacement for the outdated serum products that are currently still in use for the treatment of rabies. Lethal rabies is prevented by post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) via the combined administration of a rabies vaccine and rabies immune globulin (RIG) following the bite of a rabid dog. RIG, derived from human or horse blood, is in short supply and carries certain safety risks. Each year approximately 55 thousand people die of rabies because of insufficient care or lack of appropriate treatment.

The antibody product was discovered by Crucell scientists and characterized in collaboration with Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and the Rabies Section of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, based in Atlanta.

"This is the first PER.C6-based protein product we take into clinical development, following PER.C6-based classical vaccines against influenza and West Nile and adenoviral vaccines against Ebola and Malaria," said Dr Jaap Goudsmit, Crucell's Chief Scientific Officer.