OctoPlus Grants Green Cross Exclusive Korean License To OP-145 For Chronic Middle Ear Infection

LEIDEN, Netherlands, November 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- OctoPlus N.V. , the recently listed drug delivery and development company, announces today that it has granted Green Cross Corporation (Korea: KOSPI200), a leading pharmaceutical company in the Republic of Korea, an exclusive license to develop and market OP-145 for chronic middle ear infection (chronic otitis media) for the Korean market.

OP-145 is designed to break the recurring cycle of infection causing chronic middle ear infection and is currently in Phase II clinical trials. After successful completion of this trial OctoPlus plans to conduct an international multicenter clinical Phase III study. Green Cross will be responsible for the execution of the Korean Phase III study and for market introduction and commercialization of the product in the Republic of Korea.

Under the terms of the agreement, OctoPlus will retain the manufacturing rights to the bulk material and will be responsible for pharmaceutical development of the product. Green Cross will pay OctoPlus an up-front payment, milestone payments and royalties. Financial details were not disclosed.

"We are very pleased to enter into this agreement with Green Cross, a well-established and successful pharmaceutical company in the Korean market", stated Joost Holthuis, CEO of OctoPlus. "This partnership underpins the commercial value of the product and is an important next step towards a worldwide market introduction of OP-145 for chronic middle ear infection."

"We are delighted to have OctoPlus as our partner to pursue the introduction of OP-145, an excellent product for chronic middle ear infection, in the Republic of Korea. We strongly believe that OP-145 has the great potential to help many patients overcome this debilitating condition." said dr. B.G. Rhee, Senior VP, Corporate Development of Green Cross.

About OP-145

OP-145 is a novel peptide product that has a unique mechanism of action: it neutralizes the bacterial toxins that often keep chronic middle ear infections active. OP-145 offers potential benefits to patients with chronic otitis media that do not respond to currently available antibiotics and thereby require surgical intervention. Middle ear infections are a very common condition, especially in young children but also in adults, and cause a severe morbidity burden. In addition to chronic middle ear infection, OP-145 shows potential for other indications such as sinusitis and chronic bronchitis. The product has recently started a Phase II study that is part of an ongoing Phase I/IIa clinical trial.

About OctoPlus

OctoPlus N.V. is a product-oriented biopharmaceutical company committed to the development of improved pharmaceutical products that are based on its proprietary drug delivery technologies and have fewer side effects, improved patient convenience and a better efficacy/safety balance than existing therapies. Rather than seeking to discover novel drug candidates through early stage research activities, OctoPlus focuses on the development of long-acting, controlled release versions of known protein therapeutics and other drugs.

OctoPlus is also a leading provider of advanced drug formulation and clinical scale manufacturing services to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry, with a focus on difficult to formulate active pharmaceutical ingredients in injectable formulations. The earnings and expertise that OctoPlus derives from rendering formulation and manufacturing services help to support its own drug development programs.

OctoPlus is listed on Euronext Amsterdam since October 4, 2006 under the symbol OCTO. For more information about OctoPlus, please visit our website www.octoplus.nl.

This document may contain certain forward-looking statements relating to the business, financial performance and results of OctoPlus N.V. and the industry in which it operates. These statements are based on OctoPlus N.V.'s current plans, estimates and projections, as well as its expectations of external conditions and events. In particular the words "expect", "anticipate", "predict", "estimate", "project", "plan", "may", "should", "would", "will", "intend", "believe" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. We caution investors that a number of important factors, and the inherent risks and uncertainties that such statements involve, could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. In the event of any inconsistency between an English version and a Dutch version of this document, the English version will prevail over the Dutch version.

CONTACT: For further information please contact: OctoPlus, Rianne Roukema,Corporate Communications, +31-(71)-524-4044