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The DTRA Extramural Program funding will complement an ongoing intramural cyclosporin neuroprotection research effort lead by Drs. Richard A. Bauman and Joseph B. Long of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR). The WRAIR intramural research has demonstrated improved neurological outcomes in animals treated with cyclosporin following traumatic brain injury or exposure to organophosphate nerve agents. Cyclosporin has shown the potential to become a highly effective pharmacological intervention against a wide range of insults to the brain and spinal cord. “The DTRA award will be instrumental to our research effort with WRAIR and will augment the development of the first brain-protecting treatment for soldiers and civilians exposed to nerve agents,” said Dr. Eskil Elmér, Principal Investigator and Maas BiolAB, LLC Chief Scientific Officer. Dr. Elmér’s team of scientists, including Drs. Magnus Hansson and Roland Mansson, will conduct the DTRA sponsored cyclosporin neuroprotection research at the renowned Wallenberg Neuroscience Center, Lund University, Sweden. Defense Threat Reduction Agency The Defense Threat Reduction Agency safeguards America and its allies from Weapons of Mass Destruction (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and high yield explosives) by providing capabilities to reduce, eliminate, and counter the threat, and mitigate its effects. (http://www.dtra.mil). Walter Reed Army Institute of Research WRAIR is the largest and most diverse biomedical research laboratory in the U.S. Department of Defense. WRAIR conducts biomedical research on a range of military issues including combat casualty and chemical weapons, to sustain the combat effectiveness of the warfighter. (http://wrair-www.army.mil). Maas BiolAB, LLC Maas BiolAB is a private company in Albuquerque, NM, USA developing cyclosporin neuroprotection drugs for chronic brain diseases, traumatic brain injury and nerve agent exposure. Maas BiolAB is developing Mitogard® and NeuroSTAT® (in cooperation with NeuroPharma AB of Sweden), two proprietary cyclosporin formulas for intravenous injection and CSF delivery. (http://www.maasbiolab.com). Contacts
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