AMP.L Regulatory News (AMP)

5 Apr 2007 13:00

Amphion Innovations plc, a builder of companies in life sciencesand technology, today announces that one of its partner companies,Motif Biosciences, Inc, a population genetics company in the ArabianGulf Region, has raised $1 million in a Series C financing. £ Amphion, which owns 42% of Motif, has invested $400,000 as part ofthis round. Motif is in the process of raising up to $3 million incapital and anticipates that it will conclude additional financingrounds in the coming months. £ The continued development of Motif demonstrates Amphion'scommitment to building companies that are addressing important needsin the marketplace. Motif is a population genetics company focused ondiscovering genes causing common diseases by utilising human geneticdata from the Persian/Arabian Gulf region, where the populations arefar less genetically diverse and thus much easier to analyse throughapplied genomics. Motif has leveraged its resources to develop apatent-pending methodology for collecting and analysing genetic data. £ Over the next five years, more than half of the world's topselling drugs will go off patent and as a result, pharmaceuticalcompanies are spending billions of dollars on developing newcompounds, many of which never even make it to phase three testing.There is a significant need for drug companies to develop theirpipelines more efficiently, and by applying discoveries made possibleby the mapping of the human genome researchers can better understandthe underlying mechanisms of hard-to-treat diseases such as diabetes,asthma and autism. £ The latest round of financing will support research taking placein the areas of type-2 diabetes and asthma. £ Amphion's close involvement with Motif also underscores itscommitment to establishing itself in the Gulf region, the world'sthird fastest growing economy. Earlier this year, Amphion announced aHeads of Agreement with two prominent Kuwaiti families to establish ajoint venture focused on the support and development of severalGulf-based life sciences and technology companies. £ Amphion's chief executive officer, Richard C.E. Morgan, said: £ "Motif represents a great opportunity for Amphion as drugcompanies are facing an uphill battle to quickly develop new andbetter drugs. Motif has a unique expertise in collecting and analysinggenetic data, which allows for drug companies to apply principles ofgenomics efficiently as they race to develop new drugs that can treatsome of the most challenging and chronic disease conditions." £ Zaki Hosny, chief executive officer of Motif, added: £ "We are excited that investors see the tremendous value in what wedo. We have assembled a world class collection of scientists toundertake the highly complex task of cataloging and analysing largeamounts of genetic data that we believe contain answers to some of themost difficult questions in medicine today." £ As part of Motif's ongoing commitment to its operations in theGulf, the Company has named Dr. Faisal Al-Refaei to be its RegionalDirector in the region. Dr. Faisal most recent assignment was as atthe Kuwait Ministry of Health. Dr. Faisal received his Masters inHealth Care Administration from the University of Swansea and hisMedical Degree from Aberdeen University. £ About Amphion Innovations plc £ Amphion Innovations plc is listed on the AIM Exchange in Londonunder the symbol AMP. Amphion's business is the formation, financing,management and development of life sciences and technology companies,working in partnership with corporations, governments, universitiesand entrepreneurs seeking to commercialize their intellectualproperty. www.amphionplc.com. £ About Motif Biosciences, Inc. £ Motif BioSciences, Inc. (http://www.motifbio.com) is a populationgenetics company focused on discovering genetic causes of majordiseases by interpreting the wealth of genomic data from Arabian GulfRegion. Copyright Business Wire 2007