Dalton Pharma Services, a Health Canada approved contract pharmaceutical manufacturer,  has signed a manufacturing agreement for a potent antiviral agent developed by Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC), an agency of the Department of National Defence.

DRDC has pioneered the development of LE-Poly ICLC, a broad spectrum antiviral agent shown to be effective in animal studies against avian influenza virus, ebola and alphavirus infections. Dalton, working under a sub-contract from Oncovir, established and scaled up a cGMP manufacturing process that will facilitate production of LE-Poly ICLC for future clinical trials.

This next step is a critical step in the program to develop a therapy against serious viral diseases. Dalton was a natural choice for this work because of the company’s extensive experience in the manufacturing and testing of liposome encapsulated products, and its central involvement in Poly ICLC production for clinical testing by Oncovir, Inc.

“The alliance with DRDC is a strategic relationship for us,” said Dalton’s president and CEO, Peter Pekos. “The process by which a biological product such as LE-Poly ICLC is manufactured is considered by regulatory bodies to be an integral part of the observed biological activity. By being involved in the fundamental stage of manufacturing development, we expect the eventual manufacture of LE-Poly ICLC on a commercial scale will take place here in Canada at Dalton,” continued Pekos.

Dalton Chemical Laboratories Inc. o/a Dalton Pharma Services is a Health Canada approved contract pharmaceutical manufacturer that supplies chemistry, analytical and formulation development services to the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries in the areas of chemistry, medicinal chemistry and fine chemical manufacture.

Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) is Canada’s leader in defence and security science and technology. As an agency of the Canadian Department of National Defence (DND), DRDC provides the Canadian Forces (CF), DND and the Government of Canada with the knowledge and technologies needed for national defence and security.

Poly ICLC provides the dsRNA "danger signal" missing from virtually all modern vaccines and is at the center of an ongoing revolution in cancer, HIV, and malaria vaccinology. The company is a synthetic, stabilized dsRNA therapeutic viral mimic or pathogen associated molecular pattern (PAMP) 'danger signal' that activates multiple elements of innate and adaptive immunity, including induction of a 'natural mix' of interferons, cytokines, NK cells, T-cells, myeloid dendritic cells via TLR3 and MDA5, RIG-1, OAS, PKR, and other dsRNA-dependent host defense systems.

Oncovir, Inc., is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of nucleic acid-based clinical therapies for cancer and infectious, immune, and degenerative disorders.