Vast Therapeutics, Inc. announced its drug candidate, BIOC11, was named a Qualified Infectious Disease Product by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in a press release Tuesday.

The second Vast Therapeutics drug candidate to receive QIDP designation, BIOC11 was created to treat chronic pulmonary infections in patients with cystic fibrosis, a genetic disorder that fills the lungs and digestive system with mucus.

The QIDP status grants BIOC11 eligibility for incentives provided under the Generating Antibiotic Incentives Now Act including priority review and potential fast-track status, the company said.

“Chronic, persistent lung infections continue to increase in frequency and are a major factor impacting the quality of life and untimely mortality of patients across a broad spectrum of diseases,” said Mark Schoenfisch, president and CSO of the company. “The QIDP designation will accelerate the advancement of BIOC11 regulatory approval as a potential treatment for these patients.”

A subsidiary of KNOW Bio, LLC, Vast is a preclinical-stage pharmaceutical company that treats respiratory infections through powder-based nitric oxide.