Sept. 22, 2021

The federal government has awarded additional funding of $60.5 million to Sioux Falls-based SAB Biotherapeutics as it advances its treatment for COVID-19.

That brings the company’s total federal funding for its DiversitAb Rapid Response Antibody Program to more than $200 million.

The expanded scope includes commercial manufacturing and clinical development through licensure for SAB-185 for the treatment of COVID-19.

“We appreciate the federal government’s expanded support for the further development of SAB-185, our therapeutic candidate with demonstrated ability to neutralize current and emerging variants of concern in multiple SARS-CoV-2 models,” Eddie Sullivan, co-founder, president and CEO of SAB Biotherapeutics, said in a statement.

“The U.S. government has been a tremendous partner in leveraging our novel approach and unique capabilities to help establish and scale our Rapid Response Program that enabled us to accelerate the development and production of SAB-185, a fully human polyclonal antibody therapeutic produced without the need for human donors. Our diverse and highly potent polyclonal antibodies are well-suited for treating rapidly mutating pathogens such as COVID-19. The expanded scope of this collaboration supports our goal of expeditiously completing clinical development, commercial scale-up and regulatory review as we aim to secure approval to bring SAB-185 to COVID-19 patients.”

The funding is through the U.S. Department of Defense.

SAB-185 is unique in that it is a fully human, high-potency polyclonal antibody therapeutic candidate for the treatment of COVID-19 infections. It is currently being assessed in a phase two/three trial in nonhospitalized patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 infections at risk for disease progression. The phase two portion of the clinical trial recently completed full patient enrollment. SAB-185 is the first polyclonal antibody therapeutic included in the ACTIV-2 master protocol, a study sponsored, funded and conducted by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

“I am proud of the work by our exceptional team and appreciate the continued support from our government collaborators as we advance SAB-185 through late-stage efficacy trials and potential licensure,” Sullivan said. “We will also continue to expand and optimize our rapid-response capability, providing an important model for future response to pandemics and emerging diseases.”

SAB plans to begin trading on the Nasdaq later this year through a planned merger with Big Cypress Acquisition Corp.

Behind the scenes of a deal that could catapult this local biotech company to big things