Soligenix Receives FDA Orphan Drug Designation for OrbeShield for Treatment after Exposure to Radiological Disaster

Soligenix

announced today that the Office of Orphan Products Development of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug designation to OrbeShield™(oral beclomethasone 17,21-dipropionate or oral BDP) for the prevention of death following a potentially lethal dose of total body irradiation during or after a radiation disaster. The US Orphan Drug Act is intended to assist and encourage companies to develop safe and effective therapies for the treatment of rare diseases and disorders.  In addition to providing a seven year term of market exclusivity for oral BDP upon final FDA approval, orphan drug designation also positions Soligenix to be able to leverage a wide range of financial and regulatory benefits, including government grants for conducting clinical trials, waiver of expensive FDA user fees for the potential submission of a New Drug Application for oral BDP, and certain tax credits. Oral BDP is a highly potent, topically active corticosteroid that has a local effect on inflamed tissue.  BDP is the active ingredient in OrbeShield™, currently being developed for the treatment of gastrointestinal acute radiation syndrome (GI ARS), the driving component in