Inovio Pharmaceuticals's Scientific Advisory Board Chairman Elected as a Fellow by the American Association for Advancement of Science
BLUE BELL, Pa., Feb. 21, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE Amex: INO) announced today that David B. Weiner, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and Chairman of Inovio's Scientific Advisory Board, has been elected a fellow in the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Dr. Weiner, often called the "father of synthetic DNA vaccines," is being honored for his pioneering and enabling discoveries in the area of synthetic DNA vaccines and promoting the nascent field of research during its early stages. Dr. Weiner was recognized at the Fellows Forum held February 18th during the AAAS Annual Meeting in Vancouver, Canada.
Dr. Weiner's laboratory helped to found the field of synthetic DNA vaccines in the early 1990s. His laboratory and collaborators were responsible for the first synthetic DNA vaccine Investigational New Drug application (IND). This IND for HIV immune therapy became the first IND approved as a synthetic DNA therapeutic vaccine. His studies were the first to establish that synthetic DNA vaccines appear well tolerated and are immunogenic in humans.
Dr. J. Joseph Kim, President and CEO, said, "This award is further recognition of David's visionary and untiring efforts at his lab in the University of Pennsylvania. These efforts led to the first discovery in the field of synthetic DNA vaccines. He created the scientific foundation for Inovio's clinical stage pipeline of synthetic vaccines for cancer, HIV, influenza and many other infectious diseases. It is through David's work that we may look back at this period and call it the "era of synthetic vaccines. We at Inovio congratulate David on this prestigious honor."
The AAAS Fellowship is based on scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications. Members are elected to the organization by their peers. AAAS has been electing accomplished scientists to its society since 1874. The American Association for the Advancement of Science is an international non-profit organization dedicated to advancing science around the world by serving as an educator, leader, spokesperson and professional association. In addition to organizing membership activities, AAAS publishes the journal Science, as well as many scientific newsletters, books and reports, and spearheads programs that raise the bar of understanding for science worldwide.
About Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Inovio is revolutionizing vaccines to prevent and treat today's cancers and challenging infectious diseases. Its SynCon® vaccines are designed to provide universal cross-strain protection against known as well as newly emergent unmatched strains of pathogens such as influenza. These synthetic vaccines, in combination with Inovio's proprietary electroporation delivery, have been shown in humans to generate best-in-class immune responses with a favorable safety profile. Inovio's clinical programs include Phase II studies for cervical dysplasia, leukemia and hepatitis C virus and Phase I studies for influenza and HIV. Partners and collaborators include the University of Pennsylvania, Merck, ChronTech, National Cancer Institute, U.S. Military HIV Research Program, NIH, HIV Vaccines Trial Network, University of Southampton, US Dept. of Homeland Security and PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative. More information is available at www.inovio.com.
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements relating to our business, including our plans to develop electroporation-based drug and gene delivery technologies and synthetic vaccines and our capital resources. Actual events or results may differ from the expectations set forth herein as a result of a number of factors, including uncertainties inherent in pre-clinical studies, clinical trials and product development programs (including, but not limited to, the fact that pre-clinical and clinical results referenced in this release may not be indicative of results achievable in other trials or for other indications, that the studies or trials may not be successful or achieve the results desired, that pre-clinical studies and clinical trials may not commence or be completed in the time periods anticipated, that results from one study may not necessarily be reflected or supported by the results of other similar studies and that results from an animal study may not be indicative of results achievable in human studies), the availability of funding to support continuing research and studies in an effort to prove safety and efficacy of electroporation technology as a delivery mechanism or develop viable synthetic vaccines, the adequacy of our capital resources, the availability or potential availability of alternative therapies or treatments for the conditions targeted by the company or its collaborators, including alternatives that may be more efficacious or cost-effective than any therapy or treatment that the company and its collaborators hope to develop, evaluation of potential opportunities, issues involving product liability, issues involving patents and whether they or licenses to them will provide the company with meaningful protection from others using the covered technologies, whether such proprietary rights are enforceable or defensible or infringe or allegedly infringe on rights of others or can withstand claims of invalidity and whether the company can finance or devote other significant resources that may be necessary to prosecute, protect or defend them, the level of corporate expenditures, assessments of the company's technology by potential corporate or other partners or collaborators, capital market conditions, the impact of government healthcare proposals and other factors set forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010, our Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2011, and other regulatory filings from time to time. There can be no assurance that any product in Inovio's pipeline will be successfully developed or manufactured, that final results of clinical studies will be supportive of regulatory approvals required to market licensed products, or that any of the forward-looking information provided herein will be proven accurate.
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CONTACTS:
Investors: Bernie Hertel, Inovio Pharmaceuticals 858-410-3101 bhertel@inovio.com
Media: Jeff Richardson, Richardson & Associates 805-491-8313 jeff@richardsonglobalpr.com
SOURCE Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc.