Cardax Pharmaceuticals Inc., a Honolulu-based biotech firm, said it has received a grant award of up to $1.25 million from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism that will be used to advance the pre-clinical development and supply of its liver disease drug.

The grant will also fund other pre-clinical proof-of-concept studies to increase understanding of its lead compound, CDX-085, in inflammatory liver disease.
The funding will be broken into phases, with the first involving a $314,400 award that will be used to begin securing a supply of CDX-085. If certain milestones are achieved, Cardax will get $944,000 to finalize its pre-clinical supply of the compound, along with conducting proof-of-concept studies.