Member Info for paternostpauper

“Looking forward to chairing the Medilink Midlands Innovation session on the main stage at Aston Villa Football Club today (Wednesday 17th). The session will kick off (pardon the pun) at 11.30 and run until 12.30 and hopefully between the pitching companies and the panel discussion afterwards we can get some insights into the innovation process.” For more info please visit https://lnkd.in/egmJ_rMB

Chairing today’s session signals trust, influence, and credibility.

Two weeks ago Mark posted “Excellent strategy day focussed on deal making at Mills & Reeve office in Cambridge. Very insightful and I got to lead the discussion group on how to do an early deal with Pharma.”

More recently, presentations and networking at the Charles River symposium, Carlsbad. In a couple of weeks our CEO is in San Diego, presenting alongside 23 senior executives and scientists from top-tier global pharma companies and wealthy US universities.

Clearly held in high esteem by his peers, Mark’s not just participating in the life sciences ecosystem—he’s helping shape it.

Given the event’s focus on bridging scientific innovation with commercial strategy, our CEO will thrive in San Diego. Undoubtedly, his most significant stage to date - Mark’s professionalism, confidence and unwavering belief in the potential of Cytolytix are sure to resonate powerfully with the discerning, elite audience.

Elite? Oh yes! Alongside Dr Mark Eccleston, CEO of Valirx, the other 23 speakers will include:

Ashley Davalos, Assistant Dir, Ionis Pharma ($9.4B mkt cap)

Bindhu Rayaprolu, Dir, Regeneron ($77B mkt cap)

Craig Behnke, Exec VP, Prod and Dev, Lumen Bioscience Inc. ($5.1B mkt cap)

Dimitrios Zisoulis, Head of RNA Thera, Johnson & Johnson Innov Med ($427B mkt cap)

Elena Liang, Principal Scientist, AbbVie ($372 mkt cap)

Enrico Zambelli, Mgr, chiesi farmaceutici (c€3 billion net worth)

Jamie Tsung, Director, Alnylam Pharma ($59B mkt cap)

Maria Sörhede Winzell, Snr Director, Camurus ($43B mkt cap)

Sayoni Ray,Principal Scientist, Johnson & Johnson ($427B mkt cap)

Sean Sullivan, Vice President, Arcturus Thera Inc. ($460M mkt cap)

Stephen Framil, Corp Global Head of Accessibility, Merck & Co. ($210B mkt cap)

Sunita Yadav, Associate Director, Novartis Pharma ($245B mkt cap)

In addition to this who’s who of Biopharma, there are also eminent professors, Deans and Directors from Harvard (2), St John’s, Purdue and Northeastern Universities. All the above are fellow speakers at Mark’s event and in addition to attending his presentation will witness his enthusiasm when discussing Val’s flagship asset. Unlike the UK where funding is limited, many US universities are very wealthy. Harvard tops the list with a $52B endowment in FY2024.

Two other themes are running simultaneously at the centre; Formulation & Delivery and Biologics. Speakers include directors and professors from Amgen ($155B), Pfizer (139B), Eli Lilly (565B) and Genentech (part of Roche- $245B) along with other key US university representatives.

Since his appointment, our CEO has emphasised his focus is on those compounds/activities which can be monetised early and seeking EARLY PARTNERING. Never one to miss an opportunity, you can guarantee Mark will be having some productive fireside chats with many of the sector’s sharpest minds during the evenings.

GLA, AIMO, DYOR

There has been considerable interest in Val’s imminent SPVs (CLX, 201 & poss StingRay) so maybe a bit of clarity around their function and advantages:

What is an SPV?

A legally separate entity created to manage a specific biotech project, such as developing a new drug, conducting clinical trials, or looking to commercialise an asset. It operates independently from the parent company or investors.

Why set one up?

• The SPV focuses on limited assets or a therapeutic area, keeping liabilities and risks separate from other ventures and so limits financial exposure to one project.

• SPVs can have different governance, ownership, and financing arrangements than the parent company

• Often managed by a lead investor or sponsor, with oversight on budget, milestones, and regulatory compliance.

• May attract investors interested in specific therapeutic areas or treatments. (eg 201-prostate, CLX-TN breast cancer)

• Can target a geographic market, maybe where a particular disease is prevalent, allowing for tailored investor pitches and milestone-driven funding.

• The SPV usually holds intellectual property rights or licensing agreements for the biotech asset

• SPVs often operate with lean teams and outsourced models, accelerating timelines and reducing outgoings.

• Easier to sell or spin off the SPV if the project succeeds.

In the June webinar, Mark said Val’s biggest opportunity would come from SPVs by “adding value” to existing compounds, extending patents, etc to make the products more saleable. Since Mark’s appointment as CEO, Inaphaea has prioritized strategic collaborations with capability partners to expand the data landscape across the CLX and 201 assets, leveraging advanced 3D screening technologies. Recent RNS’ have already partially addressed the patent issues. Even back in April, there was Taiwan interest in 201 and now ‘major pharma’ in Cytolytix so parties are already queuing up to be first in line.

In the recent podcast, Mark referred to “setting up the next series of SPVs”. Normally, a series is considered 3 or more! We know 201 and CLX are being prepared and StingRay is a definite contender but is there also a dark horse?

Little green men invading again. Invariably they have given up on their own failed investments so instead of expressing their dismay on the respective forums, come to Val to vent their frustrations.

Bring it on! LOL

Happy days.

It’s rare for a CEO of any PLC to give such an honest and frank interview, particularly when aware from the outset that it would not be edited.

Mark was asked what skill he considered essential and immediately responded with communication. Whether with colleagues, potential business partners or SHs, he is a no BS guy - honest and forthright. It’s probably why he expressed such surprise at being ‘shafted’ by an unidentified trader who changed his support for the placing late in the day. I guess Mark didn’t realise just how unscrupulous some individuals can be and judged others by his own moral standards. Thankfully, he learned from that and confirmed it will never happen again. Love it!

As regards news-flow, Mark doesn’t restrict himself to RNS, which he considers impersonal. Every RNS has to be vetted by the Nomad who invariably sanitises the release, removing any “excitement”. Think back to those soulless, unattended football matches on TV during Covid—you get the gist. It’s 6–0 and you’re nodding off.

Mark frequently releases supporting media to “put meat on the bones” of any RNS. Whether it’s webinars, Linkedin posts, podcasts, website updates or response to shareholder e-mails, he considers all modes of communication as an opportunity. However, Mark is in his element when he has the freedom to express himself to an audience, whether potential partners or collaborators. Like any good salesman, he sells both himself and the company to everyone listening.

When on a convention, he can have between 30-50 meetings, either 1-2-1 or networking, over a 3-day period. That is some going and shows not only his drive but great stamina. He views every contact as an opportunity to build a relationship. It certainly helps to have his broad scientific background, but his belief in the company’s assets supports his stage presence. To buy 6% of Val is a significant statement of his confidence in the company’s direction. Even more so, when Mark admits it was money earmarked to clear his mortgage. Few other investors would show that degree of commitment. There again, Mark is fairly unique!

“Awesome Second day at Charles River Laboratories. Really inciteful discussion about new approach methodologies which is a subject close to my heart and a corner stone of VALIRX PLC ‘s programmes. Building on Inaphaea BioLabs NAMs approaches we’re looking to minimise animal testing and maximising benefit to species that contribute to drug development.

Happily I managed to connect with Heather Wilson-Robles who happened to be in town and discuss options for our therapeutic programmes in companion animals.”

FOR INFO: New Approach Methodologies is a collective term used to describe innovative, non-animal technologies and strategies in biomedical research and regulatory testing. These methods aim to reduce, refine, or replace animal use while improving human relevance and translational value.

The Biobank itself gives Inaphaea instant access to an extended range of PDCs and tissue for human cell-based assays. Mark has also entered into several collaborations using AI & ML to enable rapid computer modelling and virtual screening. Example include Screen in 3D Ltd – ‘Lab-on-a-Chip’ tech, VoxCell's perfused 3D culture platform & Ignota’s Safepath used in conjunction with our PDCs to give an AI approach to asset discovery.

Although acknowledged for his scientific expertise in multiple oncology fields, Mark is also a successful businessman. In his June webinar he listed one of his key qualities as opportunity recognition. In his first year as CEO he has significantly progressed the legacy drugs (201-/301 Blue Ribbon Prostate, 301- Ambrose deal, CLX renewing patents and even potential early partnering). He has also expanded Val into several new fields of oncology; drug repurposing (“teaching an old drug, new tricks”), immunotherapy, alternative formulations of CLX (virus, liposome, SmartCelle) and with the veterinary weighting of the new Advisory Board clearly sees opportunities in comparative oncology.

However, all Mark’s scientific and commercial qualities wouldn’t be quite so relevant if he didn’t believe in Val. He clearly does, buying a 6% stake in the company and so backing himself and his hand-picked team to succeed.

@ chrishutch

Struggling to attach the link but main body copied below. You don't need to subscribe to view:

Mark Eccleston

• 1stVerified • 1st

Chief Executive Officer ValiRx

3d • 3 days ago • Visible to anyone on or off LinkedIn

Excellent strategy day focussed on deal making at Mills & Reeve office in Cambridge. Very insightful and I got to lead the discussion group on how to do an early deal with Pharma. Also really happy to catch up with Zickie Lim - my first ever lawyer back in the day when we worked together in my first spin out Vivamer.

Graham Combe

Founder of the #CreativeDisruption & #AgileLeaders Forums & #BiotechBuddies and #CoffeeBuddies EventsFounder of the #CreativeDisruption & #AgileLeaders Forums & #BiotechBuddies and #CoffeeBuddies Events

3d • Edited • 3 days ago • Edited • Visible to anyone on or off LinkedIn

hashtag#ThoughtfulThursdays: it was fantastic to host our sold out hashtag#CreativeDisruption Forum on the 4 September at Mills & Reeve’s hashtag#CambridgeHQ.

Thank you to our resident thought-leader Tony Sedgwick for leading the conversation on hashtag#Dealmaking and hashtag#Investment Stratagies.

Thank you to all our great speakers which included:

The Experts: James FRY from Mills & Reeve for the UK/EU point of view and William Hicks from Mintz the State-Side view-point, and Dianne Lee (FTOPRA, CDir) from DLRC Regulatory Consultancy for her regulatory viewpoint.

Then we had the hashtag#investors who included Pierre-Louis Joffrin, Syncona Limited, Jonathan Tobin Brandon Capital and Naz Bashir from the Evolutia hashtag#FamilyOffice.

The we had the hashtag#Dealmakers including Jane Dancer, Spyridon Servos and Bradley Hardiman.

Then the hashtag#bootsontheground who are the company hashtag#CEOs which included Robin Bhattacherjee, Jenny Barnett and Victor Higgs who all were delivering success in their own way in difficult market conditions.

Also big thanks to our supporting sponsors Jack Corbett from GENerX Life, Tamsin Lamont, Collaborative Drug Discovery - CDD Vault and Jamie Cartland at Causaly.

More thanks go to Mark Eccleston, Anna I. B., Keith Rodgers, James Foster for stepping up to help run the afternoon Workshops where we digest some of the key points brought up by our keynotes, and also a great opportunity to get to know each other.

Well, is this a mildly cryptic glimpse into the Val crystal ball? LOL

The intro to Mark’s post on Linkedin this morning!

“Excellent strategy day focussed on deal making at Mills & Reeve office in Cambridge. Very insightful and I got to lead the discussion group on how to do an early deal with Pharma.”

Ooops, my bad. LOL

This event is NEXT month. I was going thru’ the on-line agenda and attendees and in my excitement forgot we are still in September. That happens when you are retired!

However, otherwise the info is still completely accurate.

Better book my flight back to the UK. 😀

Mark has now completed the first of his two planned US events for early September. The Oxford Global Discovery and Development US was held at the Sheraton San Diego Resort, San Diego on October 2–3, it featured:

500+ leading pharma, biotech, regulatory & academic delegates

200+ pre-arranged 121 meetings facilitating business growth

35+ hours of presentations & interactive content

7 hours of networking breaks..

“This event highlights the whole value chain of novel drugs – all the way from early discovery to later stage development - providing a unique opportunity for research leaders & product developers to come together and engage with cutting-edge ideas & best practices across the field of drug discovery, formulation & delivery.”

Given the event’s focus on bridging scientific innovation with commercial strategy, Mark E would thrive in that arena. His professionalism, confidence and simple belief in the potential of Cytolytix could not fail to impress the elite audience.

Elite? Oh yes! In addition to Dr Mark Eccleston, CEO of Valirx, the other 23 speakers included:

Ashley Davalos, Assistant Dir, Ionis Pharma ($9.4B mkt cap)

Bindhu Rayaprolu, Dir, Regeneron ($77B mkt cap)

Craig Behnke, Exec VP, Prod and Dev, Lumen Bioscience Inc ($5.1B mkt cap)

Dimitrios Zisoulis, Head of RNA Thera, Johnson & Johnson Innov Med ($427B mkt cap)

Elena Liang, Principal Scientist, AbbVie ($372 mkt cap)

Enrico Zambelli, Mgr, chiesi farmaceutici (c€3 billion net worth)

Jamie Tsung, Director, Alnylam Pharma ($59B mkt cap)

Maria Sörhede Winzell, Snr Director, Camurus-Sweden ($43B mkt cap)

Sayoni Ray,Principal Scientist, Johnson & Johnson ($427B mkt cap)

Sean Sullivan, Vice President, Arcturus Thera Inc. ($460M mkt cap)

Stephen Framil, Corp Global Head of Accessibility, Merck & Co., Inc. ($210B mkt cap)

Sunita Yadav, Associate Director, Novartis Pharma ($245B mkt cap)

There were also eminent profs, Deans and Directors from Harvard (2), St John’s, Purdue and Northeastern Universities. All the above were fellow speakers at Mark’s event and in addition to attending his presentation would have witnessed his enthusiasm when discussing Val’s flagship asset.

Two other themes were running simultaneously at the centre; Formulation & Delivery and Biologics. Speakers included directors and profs from Amgen ($155B), Pfizer (139B), Eli Lilly (565B) and Genentech (part of Roche- $245B). Other key US univs also attended and unlike the UK where funding is limited, many US univs are very wealthy. Harvard tops the list with a $52B endowment in FY2024.

Our CEO has his next US event at the Charles River Biotech Symposium in Carlsbad from 7th. You can guarantee the days between the events will not be “jollies” as some claim. In addition to Mark’s scientific and business-savvy background, he has a commitment and work ethic very rarely seen in an AIM company CEO. His personal financial stake is a significant driving force, along with a st

Without doubt, ‘silly money’ is to be had in the cancer arena. As a scourge of mankind, major Pharma will pay whatever it takes to lead the field. Like Chelsea, Arsenal, City or Liverpool – any potential will be snapped up early. Biopharma ’scouts’ are charged with ensuring their company doesn’t miss out.

On 3rd April, Val issued an RNS stating:

“The termination of the LOI follows notification by TRx of a decision not to proceed with an amendment to the LOI to return the territory of TAIWAN and maintain exclusivity in exchange for a non-refundable payment of $200,000 by 31 March 2025.”

When Mark was putting meat on the bones in the June webinar: ”Other aspects of 201 which were pending the outcome of TrX discussions are CURRENTLY ON HOLD, they all will benefit from the additional work we are proposing to do on 201”.

This suggests the Taiwan interest in 201 is ongoing. The recent Blue Ribbon Bio RNS advises of other assets to be included in the prostate SPV. Is this being developed as a tailor-made package for a waiting 3rd party?

Likewise, Monday’s Cytolytix RNS included the statement: “ValiRx is in discussions with several potential partners to progress CLX, including a major pharma company”.

Since his appointment, our CEO has emphasised his focus is on those compounds/activities which can be MONETISED EARLY and seeking early partnering. An early deal on either of the above assets and Val’s SP would explode.

GLA, AIMO, DYOE

Re the 3000 FDA approved, repurposing project:

The June webinar gave an update, but 2 months down the line, we will be much further along. At that time:

“We have new joint ip being developed with Dominion for repurposing non-oncology candidates identified thru’ Inaphaea’s FDA screen sets from ovarian, lung, melanoma and GDM (a type of diabetes) PDC models.” We are seeing activity in, say 250 or so of the models. These are already FDA approved, have safety data and much later stage clinical data. We need select the best of those and do a small amount of validation work then we have IP we can (jointly) file around and look to partner those”.

Although much attention is on our legacy assets, this evaluation could well be an opportunity for early monetisation. The drugs already have the safety/toxicity data so Inaphaea is focussing on proving efficacy for repurposing in cancer uses. The Biobank, 3D screening and AI/ML collaborations are all invaluable at this point.

Mark gets criticised for alliances with no immediate payback yet these tie-ups are all playing a big part in the Dominion evaluation, preparing the 201/CLX SPVs and building data into the Ambrose/401 deal. Hopefully, all the groundwork being laid now will see Val reap the benefits for years to come.

Endometriosis is a chronic, often painful condition where tissue similar to the endometrium (the lining of the uterus) grows outside the uterus—most commonly on the ovaries, fallopian tubes, and pelvic lining.

Global Market Insights (GMI) projects the market to grow from $1.9B in 2025 to $5.6B by 2034, with a CAGR of 13.1%. Future Market Insights (FMI) estimates a slightly different trajectory: $3.7B in 2025 to $6.3B by 2035, CAGR of 5.4%

Either way, no argument there is a significant market awaiting good news. Unfortunately, endometriosis currently has no definitive cure, but there are several effective treatments that can significantly reduce symptoms and improve quality of life. The goal is to manage pain, slow disease progression, and preserve fertility when needed.

Monday’s RNS included the following: “A notice of allowance has also been received for Canadian "Medical Use" patent (application No. 2,853,671) for the treatment of non-cancerous conditions relating to the use of the Val201 peptide in endometriosis (Val301).”

So, under the buy one, get one free package, the imminent prostate SPV will not only include VAL201, but VAL301 (granted and allowed patents: AU2017225015; CN104136082; EP2773427; RU2684315; US10023612; further patents pending).

Please form an orderly queue; Mr Roche, control yourself, you were behind Mr Glasko, behave yourself Mrs Novartis, you should have arrived earlier, stop kicking Mr Merck. As soon as Mr Eli & Mrs Lily have finished you can meet Mr Eccleston.

Today’s RNS states “ValiRx is in discussions with several potential partners to progress Cytolytix, including a major pharmaceutical company….”

Later in the RNS, Mark refers to the Charles River Biotech symposium in Carlsbad next week. The talk is titled ‘CLX001 - A Novel Oncolytic Peptide for Triple Negative Breast Cancer Therapy’ and Mark promotes this event on Linkedin.

Dr Charles Chen, Senior Scientist at AstraZeneca and joint inventor of CLX, has LIKED Mark’s post on Linkedin.

Don’t take my word for it:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mark-eccleston-48382a_summary-29th-annual-biotech-symposium-activity-7368260604454658048-pfZb?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAE0NUMUBpx01ohxVQgWYyspXqKpxLMPte5o

Those of you with fingers, put 2+2 together and come to a conclusion.

As for those with trotters, well…!

GLA, DYOR, AIMO

I decided to un-filter a couple of the blocked posters to see what BS they were spreading.

Pretty amazed to discover how ignorant Ratcliffewriter is regarding patent law. I guess it doesn’t receive much attention in the Beano. Wrong on pretty much every count and for someone who purports to be a multi-millionaire with his own stockbroker, very naïve to believe he wouldn’t be called out on today’s untruths.

Today’s lesson is on patents. The time from Notice of Allowance to grant is around 2 months from when the applicant completes formalities like the submission of translations of the claims (needs to be done in French and German) and then pay the fee. Check it out on the internet instead of pretending to know something when you clearly are clueless.

The second one ((application No. 20793085.0) is a little longer as it was only a notification that the claims were eligible. Val has requested accelerated examination of this which should be around three months to Notice of Allowance.

A further point, coverage starts from the priority date i.e. when the patent was filed, not when its granted. So, once Val knows the patent is going to be granted they have coverage from the original date (for the granted claims). Here endeth the lesson.

Presumably having validated the above you will retract your lies and apologise for your deception. Perhaps amend your ‘years’ to ‘months’ for a start.

As regards Mark’s jollies, Altus (Canada) RNS 29th Jan, Omios (California) RNS 3rd June, & Voxcell (Canada) RNS 29th July are all collaborations generated from biopharma events. The Omios virus in particular could have massive implications for as a CLX delivery system to selectively target and destroy cancer cells while stimulating a potent anti-tumour immunotherapy response.

Having confirmed you have nothing valid to contribute, back in the bin you go!

GLA, AIMO, DYOR

I see we have our little green visitors again. LOL

Took them a while to compose themselves after that RNS. I guess it’s the usual suspect(s).

Two excellent consecutive RNS’ with more to come shortly.

Happy days.

What a welcome RNS.

A lot of information to digest but speculation will obviously focus on the identity of the “major pharma”. Could it be AZN, an obvious link since Dr Charles Chan, a senior scientist at AstraZeneca, was one of the two inventors of Cytolytix?

Happy days.

GLA, DYOR, AIMO

Anyway, Uncanny wot you playing at? LOL

You forgot to mention that you topped up again on 5th June and now hold 6.17% of the company.

@basher

As Uncanny won’t overegg himself, I’ll do it for him. Not only is Stephen Wolstenhulme Val’s 2nd biggest holder, he is also a successful stockbroker and biopharma entrepreneur.

I guess if anyone puts their money where their mouth is, it’s Stephen W. Mind you, Val’s CEO, Mark E is confident it will all work out nicely too. He is a long-time holder and although currently underwater is now the 3rd biggest holder with over 22m shares and 6.08% of the company.

Nuff said!

Fair play, Nick – tho’ you have been known to change your stance. Lol

Out of interest, as of August 2025, Adam is still listed as a SH in ValiRx plc ( Market screener), holding approximately 2.07% of the company’s shares, which equates to 7,749,163 shares. Some Val holders you know have also confirmed Adam to still be a holder.

Seems like he still sees potential for gains?