Tests to determine the level of radiation. The Israeli treatment made this redundant (Photo: Reuters)
At a time when missiles are flying in Russia and Ukraine over nuclear reactors, and no one can guess President Putin's next steps, the world is preparing for the worst—a situation in which large populations will need available treatments for radioactive radiation injuries.
Israeli biotechnology company Flory, which has already developed cell therapy against acute radiation syndrome, signed an agreement with the US Department of Defense this week according to which the two entities will cooperate in the further development of the new treatment and the completion of the necessary trials on the way to its approval and distribution worldwide.
The $4.2 million agreement signed with the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases will ensure continued development of the treatment, which has already been tried and demonstrated a significant increase in survival rates in animals treated after radiation exposure, from 29% in the control group to 97% in the treatment group. In other trials, the new treatment was also successfully tried as a radiation prophylaxis, and demonstrated an increase in the survival rate from 4% in the control group to 74% in the group that received the treatment.
In contrast to the currently recommended treatment method, Israeli treatment does not require checking the level of radiation to which the victims were exposed, which saves valuable time in an emergency event (Photo: AP)
The treatment adjusts its activity level to the intensity of the injury - saving valuable time
Radioactive radiation is one of the most dangerous scenarios known to mankind, with radiation-stricken areas remaining uninhabited for a long time, and the affected people suffering from it for many years. Radiation damage can be caused by damage to nuclear reactors, and in extreme cases even by direct hits by countries
Radiation poisoning (ARS), caused by uncontrolled exposure to life-threatening amounts of ionizing radiation, in cases of nuclear accidents and warfare. Such poisoning causes bone marrow suppression, leading to life-threatening effects. Today, radioactive radiation is one of the most dangerous scenarios known to mankind, with radiation-stricken areas remaining uninhabited for a long time, and the affected people suffering from it for many years. Radiation damage may be caused by damage to nuclear reactors, and in extreme cases even by direct hits by states. At this time, there is real concern of such an event on Ukrainian soil, where the war with Russia has been going on for over a year and there are a number of active reactors. Such an event could severely harm the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.
Flory's cell therapy offers a medical solution in cases of a multi-casualty event as a result of exposure to radioactive radiation, which can cause serious injuries and even deaths. The goal of the treatment is to serve as an advanced alternative to products available today that provide only a partial solution for phenomena resulting from radiation exposure. In previous experiments, it has been proven that PLX cells adjust their activity level to the intensity of the hematological injury, and therefore - unlike the currently recommended treatment method - there is no need to check the level of radiation to which the victims were exposed. Another benefit is PLX-R18's ability to restore the three blood lines (platelets, white blood cells, and red blood cells), reducing to zero the amount of blood transfusions required to treat patients throughout their recovery. This parameter is critical for system management in a mass casualty event, since in this scenario a shortage of blood units is expected and operational capacity is expected to be limited.
Due to the characteristics of the new treatment, there is no need to check the level of radiation to which the victims were exposed prior to use. This saves significant time in questioning each victim and understanding exactly how and where he was during the exposure.
The treatment has also been tried in humans. In a clinical study of patients after bone marrow transplantation, a phenomenon that closely simulates exposure to radioactive radiation, the product showed an excellent safety profile. It was also observed that patients treated with PLX-R18 showed an increase in all three types of blood cells, showing a decrease in the average number of blood units from 5.09 monthly doses to 0.55 for platelets and from 2.91 to 0 for red blood cells.
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"A critical time to accelerate the development and availability of radiation treatments"
The Israeli biotechnology company will soon take part in an experiment with Prof. Vijay K. Singh of the U.S. Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Maryland. Prof. Singh, a world-renowned radiation expert, headed a laboratory aimed at developing advanced treatments against radiation. The FDA previously approved an investigational new drug application for PLX-R18 for radiation therapy in the event of nuclear events, granting it orphan drug designation.
"In light of the current geopolitical events and the war being waged near nuclear power plants in Europe," saysYaki Yanai, CEO and President of Flory, "this is a critical time to accelerate the development and availability of radiation treatments. We are proud of our team for working tirelessly to advance PLX-R18 to these studies. We understand the importance of accelerating the program to a market-available product and believe this strategic contract will help us achieve our goal of making PLX-R18 available for emergency readiness."
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- Radioactive radiation
- Flory
- U.S. Department of Defense