As Specter of Nuclear Disaster Rises, Israeli Innovator Inks Partnership with Pentagon, NIH

With nuclear tension rising in Eastern Europe, the global community finds itself in a precarious position: Medical responses to nuclear fallout have not kept pace with weapons that have grown far more powerful since World War II.

Now the U.S. government is turning to one of Israel’s most innovative companies to develop next generation treatments for soldiers and civilians affected by a nuclear war or accident.

The Biden administration signed a new $4.2 million research and funding agreement this month with Pluri Inc., an Israeli biotechnology leader, to develop the company’s potential breakthrough treatment for Hematopoietic Acute Radiation Syndrome (H-ARS) – a deadly disease that can result from prolonged exposure to ionizing radiation, as in the wake of a nuclear strike.

Pluri (NASDAQ: PLUR) will collaborate with the U.S. Defense Department’s Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute in Bethesda, Md., with funding from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the Haifa-based company announced on Tuesday.

The contract marks a major step toward developing an H-ARS treatment that is cost-efficient and effective in the event of a wide-scale disaster. Current options on the market are not feasible or scalable responses to such an event. If Pluri’s novel PLX-R18 cell therapy ultimately receives market approval, it would be eligible for the U.S. government to purchase as part of the Strategic National Stockpile.

Notably, Pluri’s potential treatment could also be administered 24 hours in advance for people who are at risk of exposure to nuclear radiation.

The partnership comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin increasingly threatens to use nuclear force, as Russia’s prolonged invasion of Ukraine drags on. Putin last month deployed short-range missiles into Belarus, and U.S. officials have deemed his threats of a potential nuclear attack to be credible.

Fighting between Russian and Ukrainian troops has also spilled closer to nuclear power plants in the region.

“The current time calls for us to accelerate the development and accessibility of radiation treatments, especially as geopolitical instability rises, and nuclear power plants face the threat of warfare,” Pluri President and CEO Yaky Yanay said on Tuesday. “Through this strategic contract with NIAID, we believe that we can realize our mission of making PLX-R18 readily available for emergency preparedness.”

Commonly referred to as radiation poisoning, H-ARS stems from radiation that can damage the exposed person’s stomach, intestines, blood vessels and bone marrow, the company noted. It can lead to cancer and other potentially fatal diseases.

Vijay Singh, head of the AFRRI laboratory in Bethesda, said he has “high expectations for results” from Pluri and the Pentagon’s collaborative effort.

“PLX-R18’s potential as a medical countermeasure for H-ARS is supported by robust human and animal data, making it a unique asset for further investigation,” Singh said in the press release.

The collaboration represents a somewhat unusual partnership between the U.S. military and a foreign pharmaceutical contractor, as well as a high-profile example of Israeli ingenuity meeting a critical need for the global community.

Pluri is an established pioneer in cell replication technology, initially focusing on medical treatments before recently expanding to other life sciences sectors including cultivated foods, biologics and agri-tech. For example, the company last year launched a groundbreaking partnership with Tnuva Group, Israel’s largest food producer, to develop cultivated meat products.

The company received a major biotech industry award last year, when its patented cell expansion platform with wide-ranging capabilities across sectors was recognized as the industry’s 2022 cell technology innovation of the year.