1st May 2007 07:03
Oxford Biomedica PLC01 May 2007 For Immediate Release 1 MAY 2007 OXFORD BIOMEDICA AND COLLABORATORS TO PRESENT PRECLINICAL DATA FOR RETINOSTAT(R) AND STARGEN(TM) AT 2007 ARVO ANNUAL MEETING Oxford, UK: 1 May 2007: Oxford BioMedica (LSE: OXB), the leading gene therapycompany, today announced that preclinical data for its two gene-basedtherapeutics for ocular diseases will be presented on Monday, 7 May at the 2007Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) Annual Meeting thatis taking place on 6-10 May in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Scientists from OxfordBioMedica and its collaborative partners at Columbia University will make atotal of three poster presentations that describe preclinical data for twoproduct candidates: RetinoStat for age-related macular degeneration and diabeticretinopathy; and StarGen for Stargardt's disease. Details are as follows: Session: Gene Transfer/Gene Therapy I. Monday, 7 May 2007 11:15 AM - 1:00 PM atthe Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Centre Development of Novel Promoters That Drive Photoreceptor Specific Expression inan EIAV Lentiviral Vector (Abstract #1675) Efficient Delivery of Genes Into Photoreceptors by Lentiviral Vectors:Application for Treatment of Stargardt's Disease (Abstract #1679) The Development of EIAV-Based Lentiviral Gene Therapies for NeovascularAge-related Macular Degeneration and Other Ocular Diseases (Abstract #1686) The abstracts may be accessed online at http://www.arvo.org at the conclusion ofthe meeting. -Ends- For further information, please contact: Oxford BioMedica plc:Professor Alan Kingsman, Chief Executive Tel: +44 (0)1865 783 000 City/Financial Enquiries:Lisa Baderoon/ Mark Court/ Mary-Jane Johnson Tel: +44 (0)20 7466 5000Buchanan Communications Scientific/Trade Press Enquiries:Gemma Price/ Holly Griffiths/ Katja Stout Tel: +44 (0)20 7268 3002Northbank Communications Notes to editors 1. Oxford BioMedica Oxford BioMedica (LSE: OXB) is a biopharmaceutical company specialising in thedevelopment and commercialisation of novel therapeutic vaccines and gene-basedtherapies with a focus on the areas of oncology and neurotherapy. The Companywas established in 1995 as a spin-out from Oxford University, and is listed onthe London Stock Exchange. The Company has a platform of gene delivery technologies, which are based onhighly engineered viral systems. Oxford BioMedica also has in-house clinical,regulatory and manufacturing know-how. In oncology, the lead product candidateis TroVax(R), an immunotherapy for multiple solid cancers, which is beingdeveloped and commercialised in collaboration with Sanofi-Aventis. TroVax is inPhase III development for renal cancer and Sanofi-Aventis is implementing adevelopment plan for colorectal cancer. Oxford BioMedica's oncology pipelineincludes a specific immunotherapy candidate, Hi-8(R) MEL, for melanoma, whichhas completed two clinical trials. In neurotherapy, the Company's lead product,ProSavin(R), is expected to enter clinical development for Parkinson's diseasein 2007. The neurotherapy pipeline also includes preclinical gene-basedtherapeutics for vision loss, motor neuron disease and nerve repair. Inaddition, the Company has a platform technology for therapeutic vaccines forinfectious diseases. The Company is underpinned by over 80 patent families, which represent one ofthe broadest patent estates in the field. The Company has a staff ofapproximately 75 split between its main facilities in Oxford and its whollyowned subsidiary, BioMedica Inc, in San Diego, California. Corporatepartnerships include the collaboration on TroVax with Sanofi-Aventis and on atargeted antibody therapy with Wyeth. Intervet, Sigma-Aldrich, Viragen, MolMedand Virxsys are also corporate partners. Technology licensees include Merck &Co, Biogen Idec, GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer. Further information is available at www.oxfordbiomedica.co.uk 2. RetinoStat(R): retinopathy RetinoStat is the Company's novel gene-based treatment for neovascularage-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy (DR), which arecaused by the unregulated and aberrant growth of leaky and disruptive bloodvessels in the retina. The product uses the LentiVector(R) system to deliver twoanti-angiogenic genes that block the formation of new blood vessels in theretina. The therapeutic genes, angiostatin and endostatin, have been exclusivelylicensed by Oxford BioMedica for use in treatments of ocular diseases fromEntremed Inc. Preclinical studies have shown statistically significant efficacy in anindustry-standard model of AMD. Additional studies are ongoing at the JohnsHopkins Hospital in the USA, in collaboration with a US charity, the FoundationFighting Blindness. These studies are designed to support a regulatorysubmission for clinical trials, which are expected to start in 2008. AMD and DR are major causes of blindness in the developed world. AMD affects anestimated 25 to 30 million people in the western world. Existing treatments forboth conditions have to be administered many times over many years by directinjection into the eye. RetinoStat has a potential competitive advantage, as itwould require only a single or infrequent administration. Analysts' estimates,published in the Wall Street Journal, suggest that sales of an effectivetreatment for macular degeneration could exceed US$1 billion per annum. 3. StarGen(TM): Stargardt's disease StarGen is Oxford BioMedica's novel gene-based therapy for the treatment ofStargardt's disease. The disease is caused by a mutation of the ABCR gene whichleads to the degeneration of photoreceptors in the retina and vision loss.StarGen uses the Company's LentiVector system to deliver a corrected version ofthe ABCR gene. It is administered directly to photoreceptors in the retina. StarGen has shown preclinical efficacy in the only available model ofStargardt's disease. A single administration was effective for the duration ofthis six-month study. Further preclinical development is ongoing at ColumbiaUniversity in the USA, in collaboration with the Foundation Fighting Blindness(FFB), which is also collaborating on the RetinoStat programme, and FFB'ssupport organisation, the National Neurovision Research Institute. Stargardt's disease is the most common juvenile degenerative retinal diseasewith a US and EU population of approximately 50,000 cases and an incidence of 1/10,000 (600 new cases per year). There are no current treatment options forpatients but, based on prevalence, the commercial market could exceed US$75million. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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