1st Feb 2007 07:05
Stem Cell Sciences plc01 February 2007 1 February 2007 Stem Cell Sciences signs Material Transfer Agreement and Option to License Novel Technology ("Stem Cell Sciences", "SCS" or "the Group") Stem Cell Sciences plc (AIM: STEM), the global biotechnology company focused onthe commercialisation of stem cells and stem cell technologies in research andnovel cell-based therapies, is pleased to announce that it has signed a MaterialTransfer Agreement ("MTA") and Option to License with AIM-listed HendersonMorley plc (AIM: HML). This agreement allows Stem Cell Sciences (SCS) to explorethe use of Henderson Morley's (HM) novel L-particles and PREPS technology("Technology") in the design of unique stem cell based assays. Stem cell based assays provide enormous benefit for discovering novelphysiological processes, and are becoming an invaluable research tool for bothacademic & commercial research. Success from proof of concept studies will befollowed by licensing of HM's Technology to SCS in a non-therapeutic field ofstem cells. SCS will determine whether marked L-particles can be used in the design ofreporter assays using stem cells being differentiated into more specified cellfates, such as neural, fat or bone cells. When successful, opportunities tocreate a range of relevant and useful assays with long term revenue potentialmay emerge. Being able to study normal physiology will be a major plus for theassays developed. Hugh Ilyine, VP & Chief Operating Officer of SCS plc commented: "SCS is a worldleading supplier of stem cell based technologies for the research andbio-pharmaceutical industries. By adding to our stem cell a novel reporter geneexpression technology we will continue the development of competitive biologicaldiscovery tools, and look forward to a fruitful working relationship withHenderson Morley". Andrew Knight, Chairman of Henderson Morley said: "We are pleased to announceour first potential license using PREPS and L-particles, and are excited to beworking in this new ground breaking area with Stem Cell Sciences, a companywhich has an international reputation of excellence in the field. Thepossibility of modifying stem cells in a way that has not been possible to datewill be an important scientific milestone. This could provide an exciting nearterm commercial opportunity for Henderson Morley, and we will continue to seekmore licensing partners using PREPS and L-particles as both drug deliveryvehicles and vaccine candidates." - Ends- For further information, please contact:Stem Cell Sciences plcPeter Mountford, President and CEO 0131 662 9829Hugh Ilyine, Vice President and Chief Operating OfficerSue Furber, Director of Finance & Company Secretary Weber Shandwick FinancialLouise Robson or James White 020 7067 0700 Notes to Editors PREPS and L-particles When grown in culture, alongside fully functioning viruses, herpes virusesproduce virus-like particles that completely lack DNA- a discovery made andpatented by the UK's Medical Research Council. These particles have normal surface proteins, so consequently are able to enterhost cells in significant numbers as if they were a live virus. They are howevertotally unable to cause infection due to their complete lack of DNA. Due to the large genome of the parent virus, it is possible to engineer theseparticles to express, and thus deliver intracellularly, large non nativeproteins. Henderson Morley now own all of the patents regarding PREPS and L-particles,which cover all the major territories, and numerous papers regarding theseparticles have been published in prestigious journals demonstrating the validityof this approach. Following the recent licensing agreements of ICVT, Henderson Morley is nowlooking to commercialise PREPS and L-particles as vaccine candidates, proteindelivery vectors, in-vitro reagents and as immuno-therapeutics against a widerange of targets. About Stem Cell Sciences plc Stem Cell Sciences plc (SCS, AIM: STEM) is a global biotechnology company,established in Melbourne, Australia in 1994, providing products in theburgeoning stem cell research and drug discovery markets, in addition to thetargeted development of cell-based therapies for neurodegenerative disease andinjury. The Company has established a leading intellectual property (IP) and technologyportfolio that enables the commercial application of stem cells in drugdiscovery, providing the Company with early-stage revenue streams and technologydevelopment for at scale cell production of SCS cell-based therapeutics. SCSprincipal focus is in neurological disease. Revenues in the neurotech market,including pharmaceuticals, devices and diagnostics, grew 10% in 2005 to US$110billion (Neurotech Insights, Volume 2/3 April 30 2006). SCS operates as a group of independent operations with laboratories in Scotland,Japan and Australia, each of which is affiliated with an academic centre ofexcellence. These include the Institute of Stem Cell Research (ISCR), Edinburgh,UK, RIKEN Centre for Development Biology, Kobe, Japan and the Australian StemCell Centre, Melbourne, Australia. SCS has four business units focused on key sustainable business strategies. SC Proven(R) provides cell culture media (liquid formulations) and reagents thatenable the growth and differentiation of stem cells. The first commerciallyavailable product, a novel, serum free, stem cell growth medium, has beenexclusively licensed for manufacture and marketing to Chemicon, part ofMillipore Corporation. SC Licensing licenses SCS proprietary technologies, such as Internal RibosomeEntry Site (IRES) and Stem Cell Selection, for application in laboratory-basedresearch and discovery. SCS has licensed technology to major pharmaceutical andbiotechnology companies including Pfizer, Sanofi Aventis, GSK, Deltagen Inc andLexicon Genetics Inc. SC Services provides specialised stem cell production for basic research anddrug discovery, including high-throughput applications. SC Therapies' goal is to develop safe and effective cell-based therapies forcurrently incurable diseases. SCS is conducting preclinical evaluations of itsneural stem cell lines in a number of therapeutic applications. The firstpreclinical programme being undertaken by SCS is in spinal cord injury repair.Its Japanese affiliate SCS KK will conduct preclinical studies for the treatmentof Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy in 2007-8. For further information on the company please visit: www.stemcellsciences.com Henderson Morley plcFurther information on Henderson Morley plc can be accessed through theCompany's website at www.henderson-morley.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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