Kimer Med, innovative New Zealand biotech start-up, signs contract with Battelle Memorial Institute to pioneer antiviral drug advances

12 month contract focused on the development of new antiviral drugs
Novel candidates to be produced using Kimer Med’s broad-spectrum antiviral platform
95% of viral diseases lack an approved antiviral treatment

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NELSON, New Zealand, March 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Kimer Med, a New Zealand-based biotech start-up, today announced it has signed a contract valued at up to USD$750,000 (NZD$1.3 million) with Battelle, the world’s largest independent, nonprofit research and development organisation.

The 12 month contract is funded by the United States government through the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), and will fall into Battelle’s Accelerated Therapeutics for Combating Acute Viral Epidemics programme. The contract is focused on the discovery and development of new antiviral drug candidates for the treatment of alphaviruses.

Spread mostly by infected ticks and mosquitoes, alphaviruses cause significant human and animal disease. Infections that result in encephalitis – inflammation and swelling of the brain – are often fatal and can cause ongoing neurological problems.

There is currently no effective antiviral treatment for alphavirus infection.

“Approved antiviral drugs are currently available for only 11 out of …

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