OXFORD, England and PRINCETON, N.J., May 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Oxford Genome Sciences (UK) Ltd “OGeS” and Medarex, Inc. announced today that they have entered into a strategic collaboration to discover and develop new human antibody therapeutics for the treatment of cancers, including colorectal cancer.
The collaboration combines OGeS’ ability to discover novel targets for oncology with Medarex’s expertise in the development of fully human antibody therapeutics. The collaboration provides for OGeS and Medarex to discover, develop and commercialize therapeutic antibodies on a 50:50 basis. Other financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
During the initial phase of the collaboration, OGeS intends to provide novel colorectal cancer targets, against which Medarex expects to generate fully human monoclonal antibodies using its proprietary UltiMAb Human Antibody Development System(R). OGeS plans to utilize its unique Oxford Genome Anatomy Project (OGAP(R)) database, one of the world’s largest human protein databases that integrates genomic, proteomic and clinical information derived from blood and tissue studies for a large number of diseases from 50 different human tissues and representing 60 diseases.
“I am extremely excited about our partnership with Medarex, a leader in the development of human antibody therapeutics. Their expertise in combination with the unique targets from our OGAP database give me great confidence that we can develop new and improved treatment options for patients with colorectal cancer,” said Dr. Christian Rohlff, CEO of OGeS.
“We are very happy to have signed this agreement with OGeS and believe that access to the unique high-quality targets from the OGAP database will allow us to quickly identify novel antibody-based targets for cancer. We are impressed with the capabilities of OGeS’ technology for identifying disease targets and look forward to applying our human antibody and clinical development expertise for the development of new cancer treatments,” said Donald L. Drakeman, President and CEO of Medarex, Inc.
About Oxford Genome Sciences
Oxford Genome Sciences (OGeS) is focused on the development of personalized medicines, mainly for oncology indications. The company has developed a unique integrated platform that combines genomic, proteomic and clinical information to accelerate the discovery and validation of drug targets and biomarkers in human beings. OGeS believes the benefits are improved biomarkers for patient selection, drug response and efficacy monitoring, and the integration of diagnostics into drug development and product launch, thereby facilitating more accurate drug development and providing cost and time savings.
OGeS’s strategy is to enter into flexible strategic alliances to capture maximum value from its unique and integrated platform for the development of new therapeutics and diagnostics in the field of cancer. In parallel, OGeS provides target and biomarker discovery and screening services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies providing OGeS with short-term revenues.
OGeS, a privately held company, was formed in 2004 and is based near Oxford, UK.
About OGAP
Oxford Genome Anatomy Project (OGAP) holds one of the world’s largest proprietary collection of proteins represented by the database, which contains over one million peptide sequences from 50 tissues and 60 disease states, mapped to approximately 15,000 genes and over eight million SNPs and haplotypes. The database can be customized for individual partners to support and enhance their preclinical and clinical drug development activities.
For further information, please see http://www.oxfordgenomesciences.com.
About Medarex
Medarex is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and potential commercialization of fully human antibody-based therapeutics to treat life-threatening and debilitating diseases, including cancer, inflammation, autoimmune disorders and infectious diseases. Medarex applies its UltiMAb(R) technology and product development and clinical manufacturing experience to generate, support and potentially commercialize a broad range of fully human antibody product candidates for itself and its partners. Thirty-one of these therapeutic product candidates derived from Medarex technology are in human clinical testing or have had INDs submitted for such trials, with four of the most advanced product candidates currently in Phase III clinical trials. Medarex is committed to building value by developing a diverse pipeline of antibody products to address the world’s unmet healthcare needs. For more information about Medarex, visit its website at www.medarex.com.
Medarex Statement on Cautionary Factors
Except for the historical information presented herein, matters discussed herein may constitute forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements preceded by, followed by, or that include the words “potential"; “believe"; “anticipate"; “intend"; “plan"; “expect"; “estimate"; “could"; “may"; or similar statements are forward-looking statements. Medarex disclaims, however, any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties include risks associated with product discovery and development, uncertainties related to the outcome of clinical trials, slower than expected rates of patient recruitment, unforeseen safety issues resulting from the administration of antibody products in patients, uncertainties related to product manufacturing as well as risks detailed from time to time in Medarex’s public disclosure filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2005 and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. There can be no assurance that such development efforts will succeed or that other developed products will receive required regulatory clearance or that, even if such regulatory clearance were received, such products would ultimately achieve commercial success. Copies of Medarex’s public disclosure filings are available from its investor relations department.
OGAP(R) is a registered trademark of Oxford Genome Sciences (UK) Ltd.
Medarex(R), the Medarex logo and UltiMAb(R) are registered trademarks of Medarex, Inc. All rights are reserved.
Medarex, Inc.
CONTACT: Oxford Genome Sciences: Dr. Christian Rohlff, Chief ExecutiveOfficer, +44 (0)1235 861770, christian.rohlff@oxfordgenomesciences.com, orCitigate Dewe Rogerson (for OGeS): David Dible, Valerie Auffray, +44 (0)207638 9571, valerie.auffray@citigatedr.co.uk; or Medarex, Inc.: Laura S.Choi, Investor Relations, +1-609-430-2880, x2216, or Jean Mantuano,Corporate Communications (media), +1-609-430-2880, x2221
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