On Oct. 4, 2021, Dynavax Technologies and the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) announced Dynavax had executed an agreement for approximately $22 million over two and a half years to develop a recombinant plague vaccine adjuvanted with CpG 1018.

Plague is a potentially deadly infectious disease caused by bacteria found in fleas and rodents or by handling an animal infected with plague. It is caused by the bacterium, Yersinia pestis. It is possible that Pneumonic plague bacteria could be released intentionally in a biological attack to sicken people.