Mtph11 Jan 2019 22:45
20 December 2018
Midatech Pharma PLC
("Midatech", "Company" or "Group")
Midatech Announces Q-Spheraâ„¢ Microsphere Technology Partnership
- Collaboration agreed with major regional pharmaceutical company
- Midatech's leading technology will be used in development and evaluation with a key clinical program
- Further validates Q-Spheraâ„¢ sustained release drug delivery technology
Midatech Pharma (AIM: MTPH, Nasdaq: MTP), the R&D company focused on delivering innovative oncology and rare disease products to patients, today announces an agreement with a major regional corporation ("the Partner"), in which the Partner will evaluate Midatech's Q-Spheraâ„¢ microsphere sustained release technology for use with the Partner's materials.
Under the collaboration agreement, the Partner will conduct a feasibility program using Midatech's Q-Spheraâ„¢ technology. No financial terms have been disclosed.
The agreement follows the positive clinical 'proof-of-concept' in August this year for Q-Spheraâ„¢ as a sustained release drug platform in the MTD201 first-in-human study. This study was a key inflection and validation point for both the Q-Spheraâ„¢ technology, as well as its application in a therapeutic product MTD201 for carcinoid cancer and acromegaly.
Q-Spheraâ„¢ is the next generation micro-encapsulation and polymer-depot sustained release (SR) drug delivery platform developed by Midatech using a novel and disruptive printing-based process, with significant and distinct advantages over conventional technologies. From a manufacturing perspective Q-Spheraâ„¢ is an improved precise, scalable, efficient, and environmentally friendly microparticle manufacturing platform. From a clinical profile perspective it ensures homogenous microparticles that release active drug compounds into the body in a linear, well controlled and predictable manner over an extended period of time. Finally, from a convenience perspective Q-Sphera allows simpler and quicker reconstitution, improved injectability and less painful injections due to the smaller needle size required.
The global controlled release market size is in the order of $32bn, and the current market for sustained release microsphere products is approximately $6bn pa1 which includes blockbuster drugs for oncology, hormonal disorders, autoimmune diseases, various mental health disorders, alcohol/ drug dependence and pain management.