AVI BioPharma Awarded $28M Biodefense Research Contract

PORTLAND, Or -- AVI BioPharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: AVII), has executed a two-year $28 million research contract with the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) of Fort Belvoir, Va., an agency of the United States Department of Defense (DoD). The contract will fund AVI’s development of antisense therapeutics to treat the effects of Ebola, Marburg and Junin hemorrhagic viruses, which are seen as biological warfare and bioterrorism agents.