MENLO PARK, Calif., Oct. 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- SRI International has been awarded two National Cancer Institute (NCI) preclinical service contracts totaling $14.3 million. The contracts provide SRI up to $11.7 million for toxicology studies and an additional $2.6 million for pharmacology and pharmacokinetics studies that will be carried out through NCI's Developmental Therapeutics Program.
These five-year contracts extend SRI's preclinical studies for the NCI, one of the National Institutes of Health. Under the contracts, SRI researchers will examine the safety and efficacy of several potential treatments for cancer and other diseases of critical importance to the nation's health.
"SRI's long-standing support of NCI and its programs has led to numerous products for the treatment and prevention of cancer," said Jon Mirsalis, Ph.D., managing director of SRI's Biosciences Division, and the associate principal investigator on the NCI toxicology contract. "The continuation of the NCI preclinical development service contracts extends important work SRI researchers do to advance drug discovery and development."
"With these NCI awards, SRI's experienced researchers will use our advanced laboratories and instrumentation to produce quality data so that investigational new drugs can be reliably assessed for potential clinical evaluation," said Toufan Parman, Ph.D., associate director, Toxicology, SRI Biosciences, and the principal investigator of the toxicology contract.
"By working on the preclinical pharmacology and pharmacokinetics of investigational anticancer compounds, we will provide vital information for the design of clinical studies for cancer therapy," said Lalitha Iyer, Ph.D., Director of Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics, and the principal investigator of the pharmacology contract.
As part of this NCI program that has successfully advanced anticancer drugs to market, SRI researchers have conducted preclinical development on more than 50 potential therapies, including novel DNA and RNA vaccines, synthetic small molecules, and new modes of delivery.
These projects have been funded in whole with Federal funds from the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, under Contracts No. HHSN261201100012C and No. HHSN261201100028C. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Cancer Institute.
About SRI's Biosciences Division
SRI's Biosciences Division carries out basic research, drug discovery, and drug development, and provides contract services. SRI has all of the resources necessary to take R&D from Idea to IND®—from initial discovery to the start of human clinical trials—and specializes in cancer, immunology and inflammation, infectious disease, and neuroscience. SRI's product pipeline has yielded marketed drugs, therapeutics currently in clinical trials, and additional programs in earlier stages. In its CRO business, SRI has helped government and other clients and partners advance well over 100 drugs into patient testing. SRI is also working to create the next generation of technologies in areas such as diagnostics, drug delivery, medical devices, and systems biology.
About SRI International
Silicon Valley-based SRI International, a nonprofit research and development organization, performs sponsored R&D for governments, businesses, and foundations. SRI brings its innovations to the marketplace through technology licensing, new products, and spin-off ventures. Commemorating its 65th anniversary in 2011, SRI is known for world-changing innovations in computing, health and pharmaceuticals, chemistry and materials, sensing, energy, education, national defense, and more.
SOURCE SRI International