HOUSTON, Jan. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Tanox, Inc. (Nasdaq: TNOX - News) has received a $12.8 million(1) net milestone payment from Genentech, Inc. based on Xolair® (omalizumab) achieving 2005 U.S. sales of more than $300 million.
The payment was made under terms of the cross-licensing agreement between Tanox and Genentech with respect to certain anti-IgE antibodies. Xolair, the first humanized therapeutic antibody to be approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe persistent allergic asthma in patients 12 years of age and above, was developed by Tanox, Genentech and Novartis Pharma AG.
Tanox recorded this one-time milestone payment as fourth quarter 2005 revenue.
“The milestone payment is significant for two reasons,” said Nancy Chang, Ph.D., Tanox president and chief executive officer. “From a financial standpoint, the cash we received will be used to offset a portion of our research and development expenditures, which is a valuable benefit for a company of our size. In addition, surpassing $300 million in sales in 2005 shows that Xolair is continuing to gain acceptance among physicians and patients.”
The Food and Drug Administration approved Xolair in June 2003. Xolair received approval from the European Commission in October 2005 as a therapy to improve asthma control in adults and adolescents with severe persistent allergic asthma. The drug has been launched in the United Kingdom and Germany. Genentech and Novartis market Xolair in the U.S. Novartis has marketing rights in the rest of the world.
About Tanox, Inc.
Tanox is a biotechnology company specializing in the discovery and development of monoclonal antibodies. The company develops innovative biotherapeutics for the treatment of immune-mediated diseases, inflammation, infectious disease and cancer. Tanox’s lead investigational therapy, TNX-355, is viral-entry inhibitor antibody to treat HIV/AIDS. TNX-355 has shown significant antiretroviral activity in Phase 2 clinical testing. Tanox’s first-approved drug, Xolair® (omalizumab), is the first antibody approved to treat moderate-to-severe confirmed, allergic asthma. Xolair was developed in collaboration with Genentech, Inc. and Novartis Pharma AG and is approved for marketing in the United States, Canada and major European countries. Tanox is based in Houston and has a manufacturing facility in San Diego. Additional corporate information is available at http://www.tanox.com .
(1) $7.2 million of the $20 million gross milestone is payable to
Tanox’s former attorneys under an adverse arbitration ruling.
Source: Tanox, Inc.
