Inviragan.

Fort Collins

inviragen.com

Emerging infectious diseases, caused by tiny, often vector-borne viruses, are creating a gigantic health crisis across the globe, and Inviragen is poised to make a far-reaching difference.

"Inviragen is focusing on developing vaccines for infectious diseases worldwide," said Dr. Dan Stinchcomb, the company's co-founder and CEO. "Vaccines are the most cost-effective means of improving public health, and the vaccines we are working on serve very significant needs."

Most notably, Inviragen's exclusive license on a dengue vaccine from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has led the company to develop DENVax, a vaccine that has shown promise in clinical trials. Mosquito-borne dengue fever threatens 3.6 billion people, or more than half the world population, with more than 100 million infected each year, according to the CDC. It is a leading cause of illness and death in the tropics and subtropics.

There is no effective treatment for dengue fever, or some of the other diseases Inviragen has targeted, such as the common pediatric illness Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease. A particularly virulent form of the disease affects millions of young children in Asia, leading to more severe fevers, hospitalizations and death.