RNA vs. DNA

In September 2011, the RN Armor Vax international consortium in Orlando, FL received a $17.3 million technology investment agreement from US DARPA. Their research and development program is designed to “identify, investigate, and develop candidate RNA vaccines against infectious disease.” Work will be performed in Orlando, FL (19.59%); Lyon, France (11.93%); Tubingen, Germany (56.62%); and Nantes, France (11.86%). The work is expected to be completed by September 2015. The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency manages the contract (HR0011-11-3-0001).

RNA is very useful for synthesizing proteins. This has led to research into ways of using it as a trigger, so that cells synthesize very specific proteins that will kill tumor cells, trigger correct immune responses, or perform other related functions. Dendritic immune cells, for instance, which stimulate the production of defensive killer T-cells, are a useful vector for RNA codes that direct the production of specific proteins. Another interesting function is RNA-enhanced vaccines using “silencing RNA,” which shuts down specific proteins in the cells that process a vaccine. That lets the vaccine offer more of an antibody response, which is very useful for parasitic infections, or create more of a cellular-kill response for viral infections.

Another research contract; WSJ Top 50. (Sept 23/11)

Achaogen in San Francisco, CA is working on “preclinical development of novel therapeutics that reduce the virulence of, and inhibit resistance in, Class A Bacterial Pathogens.” Achaogen closed a $26 million round of venture financing in October 2006, and they had raised $103 million in equity by March 2011. Their approach focuses on small molecules that inhibit the emergence of bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Initial efforts had the goal of making the bacteria susceptible to existing fluoroquinolones, and potentially to other classes of antibacterial drugs.

So, just what are “Class A bacterial pathogens?” You certainly know some of them by name…

Aug 30/11: The President and Fellows of Harvard College in Cambridge, MA receive a $6.7 million cost reimbursement contract for research to develop technologies and approaches to predict natural viral evolution. We’d all benefit from that, but we’re still likely to be surprised by what actually happens.

Work will be performed in Cambridge, MA (39%); Laurel, MD (37%); Baltimore, MD (9%); Ann Arbor, MI (9%); and Pittsburgh, PA (5%). Work is expected to be completed by Aug 31/12. The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) manages the contract (HR0011-11-C-0093).

Aug 25/11: Evergreen Helicopters, Inc. in McMinnville, OR received a $16.5 million firm-fixed-price contract, to provide medical evacuation services and training support for the U.S. Army in Alaska. Work will be performed in Fairbanks, AK, with an estimated completion date of Aug 31/12. Four bids were solicited, with 2 bids received by the U.S. Army Mission & Installation Contracting Command at Fort Wainright, AK (W912D0-11-D-0002).

Evergreen Helicopters has been working stateside with the US military for some time, and is also contracted to help with heli-lift in Afghanistan. Their fleet is a diverse array of types.

(click to visit)

Aug 16/11: U.S. Army Contracting Command, Natick, MA issues a multiple-award 5-year umbrella framework worth up to $497 million, implemented as a firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract between 26 (23) contractors. Winners will compete to provide US Navy Medicine Research and Development services with personnel, materials, equipment, facilities, science, and technology “that will sustain an acceptable level of medical research.” They included…

Walter Reed Army Hospital

July 25/11: Medical care is becoming a significant item in the US defense budget, and its growth is a source of concern. Most of that relates to health care benefits, but the US military also pays to staff its facilities with doctors and nurses. The USA Healthcare Acquisition Activity in Frederick, MD recently issues a $492 million multiple-award contract to 3 of 40 contractors, for just that purpose at Medical Treatment Facilities in the D.C. National Capital Region (NCR), as well as logical extensions of those facilities in Maryland/DC/Northern Virginia, West Virginia, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Thew winning contractors will provide physician, nursing and ancillary services to July 2015. See also FBO.gov notice. The winners will compete for task orders under this umbrella contract:

• Healthcare Services of North America, joint venture in Petal, MS (W91YTZ-11-D0015)
• Magnum Opus Technologies, San Antonio, TX (W91YTZ-11-D0016)
• Nurse Etc. Staffing in Universal City, TX (W91YTZ-11-D0017).

Tribalco, LLC in Bethesda, MD receives an option on a 4-year indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract for the purchase of tactical combat casualty care sets in support of U.S. Special Operations Command. The goal for the CASEVAC Set is to have individual modules (Extraction, Mobility, Transport, Sustainment) capable of being used independently, based on a grab-and-go mentality. This option will increase the total estimated contract ceiling to $54.6 million. Work will be performed in Bethesda, MD, and is expected to be complete in 2015. This contract was awarded through competitive acquisition, but in accordance with limits allowed in 10 U.S.C. 2305(b)(4)(B) and 41 U.S.C. 253b(d)(3).

Tribalco is a certified small business formed by the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians. Their declared specialty is telecommunications, rather than the portable medical kits with monitors, trauma gear, medication, defibrillator, crash extractors, spinal boards, mountain rescue equipment, etc. required here. Even so, the special provisions that U.S. SOCOM is citing involve only limiting proposals to a highly rated subset of contractors, and prompt notification, rather than native business or small business set-asides. That’s because the 100% small business set aside was already taken care of in the April 5/10 pre-solicitation, and the TCCC CASEVAC contract was structured as a test-off and downselect to 1 vendor. Tribalco LLC appears to have beaten fellow Sept 2/10 awardees Tactical & Survival Specialties, Inc. and Remote Medical, Inc. for the production contract (H92222-10-D-0023). See also FBO solicitation.

ADF in Iraq

Global services giant Serco Group plc recently announced a new 4-year contract with the Australian Defence Force (ADF) to provide logistics and base support services in the Middle East. The contract is structured as 2 base years for “over” A$50 million (over $54 million), plus 2 more 1-year options. The British multinational already provides these kinds of services to Britain, Canada, Germany, and the USA, and has provided support services to all 3 of the ADF’s military branches for over 15 years.

Under this contract, Serco will deliver “fully integrated support for ADF bases… in areas such as maintenance and ground refuelling, together with healthcare, accommodation and other support functions. The services will be implemented in a staged approach, with all services fully operational by the end of September 2011.” Ongoing ADF operations in the Middle East include Afghanistan, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, and Sudan. Serco | Arabian Business.

• US Army Corp of Engineers unveils $5 billion Civil Works plan for FY 2011.

• Nearly 1,000 workers at 3 defense contractors in the Washington, DC area – General Dynamics, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman – are being laid off this year, the Washington Examiner reports.

• A number of projects are working to free science from the bottlenecks of copyright-bound paper articles, even for research produced on the public dime. Open source science is impractical for much defense R&D, except as a potential input. On the other hand, new Open Science approaches have shown great promise for areas like disease cures – which do have a military dimension.

• India continues working on creating a nuclear triad with the deployment of its 1st Arihant class nuclear submarine expected in 2012. It also has inspection teams doing assurance checks in advance of an expected buy of M777 ultra-light howitzers.

• UK announces plans for a new nuclear-powered submarine to replace its existing Vanguard class submarine. Advance design contracts for the missile section started a while ago, and the main build decision is expected in 2016.

• Italy accepts 2 of its 4 ordered KC-767A aerial tankers into service, after a long set of technical delays and certifications.

• Israel is setting up a taskforce to develop defense capabilities against cyber attacks on critical infrastructure. Rumor has it that they set up a task force to handle the other end a while back. You’d have to ask the Iranians.

The Clark/ Balfour Beatty JV in Bethesda, MD a $7.5 million firm-fixed-price modification to increase the maximum dollar value of a previously awarded firm-fixed-price design-build contract for an in-vitro fertilization clinic and stem cell laboratory at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, MD.

After award of this modification, the total cumulative contract value will be $741.1 million – but that’s for the massive construction underway at the NNMC generally, not just the clinic. Work will be performed in Bethesda, MD, and is expected to be complete by July 2011. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Washington in Washington, DC (N40080-08-C-0007).