Date: Jul 03, 2013 Author: press release Source: Company Data (
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Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A. - July 3, 2013 - Intralytix, Inc. announced today that the company has received a SBIR Phase I grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A.) to develop a bacteriophage (or phage) cocktail effective against the shellfish pathogen Vibrio tubiashii. A spokesperson for the company noted that, in developing this proposed technology, Intralytix will be working closely with the USDA/ARS laboratory located in Dover, Delaware, under the direction of Dr. Gary Richards.
Dr. Richards noted that V. tubiashii is a bacterial pathogen of larval shellfish and is responsible for severe but periodic outbreaks of illness in shellfish hatcheries, particularly on the U.S. West Coast, where hatchery production has been down by up to 80%.
"We are pleased to be working with Dr. Richards," announced Dr. Alexander Sulakvelidze, Intralytix's Chief Scientist and principal investigator of the SBIR grant. "Our goal will be to develop an all natural product that can eliminate or significantly reduce larval shellfish mortality caused by V. tubiashii."
Intralytix has already introduced three phage-based food safety products approved by U.S. regulatory authorities. ListShield™, EcoShield™ and SalmoFresh™ are the company's current commercial offerings effective against Listeria monocytogenes, E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella spp., respectively. In the seafood industry, the company's ListShield has become very popular among smoked salmon processors because of its efficacy in substantially reducing or eliminating L. monocytogenes.
"We view this grant as an important first step in developing a series of phage-based natural products for the aquaculture industry," stated John Woloszyn, Intralytix's CEO. "V. tubiashii is a major cause of larval shellfish mortality, which results in increased costs to the aquaculture industry and consumer. Therefore, our V. tubiashii phage preparation could have a very significant impact on reducing larval mortality in hatcheries and on reducing the cost of producing and buying oysters. We are confident of success that will result in a bi-coastal benefit to both oystermen and oyster lovers" he added.
Intralytix, Inc. is a world leader in bacteriophage technology, using its core technology platform to improve human health through the development and commercialization of innovative products for food safety, animal health, human therapeutics and probiotics.
For more information, contact Mr. John Woloszyn (410-625-3813 or jwoloszyn@intralytix.com) or Dr. Alexander Sulakvelidze (410-625-2533 or asulakvelidze@intralytix.com).
