OXFORD, UK – 27 September 2012 – Circassia Ltd, a specialty biopharmaceutical company
focused on allergy, today announced the publication of positive phase II results with its
ToleroMune® cat allergy treatment in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (JACI). The
results show that cat allergy patients who received four doses of ToleroMune® treatment over 12
weeks maintained a significantly greater improvement in symptoms one year after the start of the
study compared with placebo (p=0.0104).
“These results are extremely encouraging, as they suggest our novel ToleroMune® cat allergy
therapy has the potential to modify the underlying allergic disease, and thereby offer patients
ongoing symptom improvement after just a short course of treatment,” said Steve Harris,
Circassia’s CEO. “The peer-reviewed publication of these clinical results in the leading journal in
the allergy field, the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, is an important achievement for
Circassia as we rapidly progress our ToleroMune® treatment into phase III development.”
The study, ‘Fel d 1-derived peptide antigen desensitization shows a persistent treatment effect 1
year after the start of dosing: A randomized, placebo-controlled study,’ was published online on 17
September*, and will appear in an upcoming edition of JACI. The trial included 202 patients with
cat allergy who received placebo or Circassia’s ToleroMune® treatment, which consists of seven
synthetic peptides derived from the major cat allergen Fel d 1. One year after the start of the
study, 89 patients returned to reassess their symptoms while exposed to cat allergens. The study
found an immediate and continuing improvement in patients’ symptoms following four doses of the
ToleroMune® treatment over 12 weeks, and a significant decrease compared with placebo one
year after the start of the trial despite no further dosing. The authors note that the symptom
reduction represents a substantial improvement over a number of allergy treatment approaches
investigated previously. The ToleroMune® treatment was well tolerated and had a safety profile
similar to placebo.
References
* Patel D et al. Fel d 1-derived peptide antigen desensitization shows a persistent treatment effect 1 year
after the start of dosing: A randomized, placebo-controlled study. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2012 online 17
September: http://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(12)01206-7/abstract
A summary of the study is published on the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology website:
http://www.aaaai.org/global/latest-research-summaries/Current-JACI-Research/short-course-
immunotherapy-improved-cat-allergy-rh.aspx
About Circassia’s ToleroMune® allergy treatments
Circassia is developing a range of allergy treatments based on its proprietary ToleroMune® technology. This
uses small sections of allergens (epitopes) to generate regulatory T cells that suppress allergic responses
and create immune tolerance in patients. The company has successfully completed a number of phase II
studies with its cat, house dust mite, ragweed and grass allergy therapies. Clinical results show that short
courses of Circassia’s allergy treatments can greatly reduce patients’ allergic responses, without the need for
adjuvants or other immune stimulators, while proving extremely well tolerated. As a result, the treatments
offer major potential clinical benefits compared with existing therapies, and have significant market
opportunities. More than 150 million people suffer from allergic rhinitis in the US and Europe, and the current
treatment market is valued at approximately $12 billion per year.
About Circassia
Circassia was founded in 2006 by a team of highly experienced biotechnology scientists and entrepreneurs,
and is chaired by the former Chairman of GlaxoSmithKline, Sir Richard Sykes. The company is based in the
UK on the Oxford Science Park, and its joint venture with McMaster University (Adiga Life Sciences Inc) is
located in Hamilton, Canada. Circassia’s ToleroMune® technology was developed originally by scientists at
Imperial College, London. Having successfully completed five fundraising rounds, Circassia has raised
approximately £105 million ($178 million) and is backed by a syndicate of world-class institutional investors,
including Imperial Innovations and Invesco Perpetual.
Contacts
Steve Harris
CEO
Circassia
Tel: +44 (0)1865 784574
www.circassia.co.uk
Rob Budge
RJB Communications
Tel: +44 (0)1865 760969
Mobile: +44 (0)7710 741241