13th Apr 2005 07:00
Vectura Group PLC13 April 2005 ARAKIS AND VECTURA ANNOUNCE AGREEMENT ON NEW THERAPY FOR RESPIRATORY DISEASE Chippenham and Little Chesterford, UK - April 13 2005: Vectura Group plc (LSE:VEC) and Arakis Ltd today announce that they have signed a global developmentand commercialisation agreement with Novartis for their collaborative product AD237, a novel once daily, long acting antimuscarinic agent for the treatment ofchronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Novartis will be responsible for developing AD 237 both as a monotherapy and incombination with QAB149, its once daily, long acting beta2 agonist currently inPhase II clinical development. Developed to date through a joint venture between Arakis and Vectura, AD 237 isa once-daily, long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMA) with a fast onset ofaction. The compound is in Phase II trials for the treatment of COPD andstudies have thus far demonstrated that it is well-tolerated and effective over24 hours after a single dose. AD 237 was originated by Arakis and has beendeveloped using Vectura's proprietary PowderHale(R) inhalation technology fordelivering product to the lung and optimizing fine particle fraction deliverythrough a commercially available dry-powder inhaler device. Dr Chris Blackwell, Chief Executive of Vectura, said: "We believe that AD 237will play a major role in the expansion of the COPD market which is underservedtoday but set for dramatic growth over the coming decade. Our objective is forAD 237 to be launched as a differentiated once-daily antimuscarinic havingpotential patient benefits over the competition, in this rapidly expandingmarket." Dr Ken Cunningham, Chief Executive Officer of Arakis, said: "As one of theworld's leading companies in the treatment of respiratory disease, Novartis isan ideal partner for AD 237. This collaboration is Arakis' first majorout-licensing agreement and validates the Company's approach to low-risk drugdevelopment." COPD, the world's fourth largest cause of death, is an irreversible and chronicobstruction of the airways which is caused primarily by smoking. It is estimatedthat the disease is prevalent in 4% of the populations of the USA, Europe andJapan and that at least one in fifteen smokers suffers from it. Symptomsinclude chronic bronchitis and emphysema or both conditions, which slowlyprogress and eventually lead to a largely irreversible loss of lung function.The current market for COPD drug therapy is estimated to be worth $4 billion perannum and is predicted to grow to $10 billion by 2010. Under the terms of the agreement Arakis and Vectura will each receive an initialpayment of $15 million. Clinical, regulatory and commercialisation payments toeach of Arakis and Vectura will be payable upon the achievement of pre-agreedtargets, which could total up to $172.5 million each for both the monotherapyand combination product. Such initial payment plus potential milestones thustotal up to $375 million. In addition, royalties on product sales will be paidfor the monotherapy and the combination product. If a third combination productis developed by Novartis, using AD 237, further milestones and royalties may bepayable on that product. Enquiries: Vectura Group Plc Tel + 44 (0) 1249 667700Chris Blackwell, CEOAnne Hyland, CFO Arakis Ltd Tel +44 (0)1799 532350Ken Cunningham, CEOPeter Keen, CFO Financial Dynamics Tel: + 44 (0) 207 831 3113David Yates / Lucy Briggs There will be a meeting and conference call for analysts at the offices ofFinancial Dynamics at 9.30am today (UK time), please contact Claire Rowell on0207 269 7285 for further information. Notes for Editors: About Vectura Vectura's (LSE: VEC) principal focus is to combine its proprietary pulmonaryformulation and device technologies with existing, off-patent drugs to developinhaled drugs for the treatment of both lung diseases and conditions wheredelivery via the lungs can provide significant benefits, such as a rapid onsetof action, improved efficacy and improved tolerability compared with currenttherapies. The Company will seek to license its lead products to pharmaceutical companieswith established sales and marketing infrastructures for the later stages ofdevelopment and for commercialisation, typically prior to Phase III clinicaldevelopment. The Company has development collaborations with a number ofcompanies, including GSK, Chiesi and Arakis. For further information, pleasevisit Vectura's website at www.vectura.com About Arakis Arakis is a private UK based biopharmaceutical company that discovers, developsand commercialises innovative medicinal products based on established drugs anddrug templates. Its chosen therapeutic areas are inflammatory disease andoncology adjunctive therapy. Arakis has four products in clinical development: AD 237 for chronicobstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and AD 452 for rheumatoid arthritis (RA)which have completed Phase IIa trials and AD 337 for fibromyalgia syndrome andAD 923 for cancer breakthrough pain (CBP) are in Phase I. In addition, there isa preclinical pipeline of other opportunities, two of which are finishingproof-of-principle studies. Arakis was founded in March 2000 and has raised over £49 million in threeprivate equity funding rounds. The company is based at Chesterford ResearchPark, south of Cambridge, UK and currently has 38 employees. For furtherinformation about Arakis, please visit its website on www.arakis.com This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
VEC.L