CARLSBAD, Calif., Oct. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ISIS) announced today that its majority-owned subsidiary, Ibis Biosciences, Inc. (Ibis), was awarded government grants and contracts from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and other government agencies totaling up to $8.4 million. These awards will fund the utilization of several Ibis assays through Ibis' service laboratory to characterize samples provided by the government sponsor and will provide support for further development of assays to support government-sponsored projects. The focus of these projects ranges from human forensics, to detection and identification of influenza viruses and other pathogens, that could have a profound effect on animal and human health.

The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) agency awarded Ibis up to $4.2 million to fund the utilization of Ibis' commercial influenza assay to identify and differentiate avian influenza strains, to distinguish high pathogenicity from low pathogenicity strains, and to aid in the tracking of avian influenza transmissions. The contract also provides funding for the development of assays to detect a broad range of additional agricultural pathogens that are considered important to animal health and that could have a significant impact on the U.S.'s agricultural economy.

'We are pleased with the continuing support from our government partners and the opportunity to expand our commercial applications, especially in areas that are vital to our health and economy such as agriculture. As we work closely with the USDA to develop additional products that can aid in the monitoring and surveillance of avian flu, we will expand our detection assays to meet the needs of the agricultural community,' said Michael Treble, President of Ibis and Vice President of Isis.

The NIJ also awarded Ibis a new two-year project that will fund the development and implementation of next-generation human forensics markers, which are measured on the Ibis T5000(TM) Biosensor System. In addition to the new USDA and NIJ contracts, Ibis also received new contracts from other government agencies that will fund expansion of pathogen detection and identification assays and use Ibis' assay services laboratory.

Additionally, with Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute (LRRI), Ibis has successfully completed the first year of a National Institutes of Health grant in which the Ibis influenza assay characterized over 2,000 tissue extracts to study animal models of influenza transmission.