Celadon Pharmaceuticals Regulatory News (CEL)

27 Mar 2008 07:00

Celsis International PLC27 March 2008 CELSIS INTERNATIONAL PLC ("Celsis", "the Company" or "the Group") signs exclusive agreement with Apath LLC 27 March 2008: Celsis International plc, the life sciences products andlaboratory services company, today announces that its Celsis In VitroTechnologies (Celsis IVT) division has signed an exclusive global marketdevelopment agreement with Apath LLC to assist customers in the evaluation ofdrug candidates for their cytotoxicity and efficacy against the Hepatitis Cvirus. Celsis' IVT division, which provides in vitro liver cell products anddevelopment services to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries toreduce the time and cost of drug discovery and development, has signed anagreement with Apath LLC which is based on its intellectual property portfoliorelating to the Hepatitis C virus (HCV). Apath LLC is a US based drug discoverycompany focused on human viral diseases, and its portfolio was developed by itsfounder Charles M. Rice, Ph.D. and other pioneers in the field. To date, research into potential therapeutics for HCV has been significantlyhindered, in part, by the absence of effective in vitro efficacy models in whichpotential compounds can be evaluated. This unmet need has contributed to thelack of success in the development of treatments for a disease that affects anestimated 200 million people worldwide, four times the prevalence of HIV, thevirus that causes AIDS. There are over 100 pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies who haveactive HCV programmes. This agreement provides these companies with access to aunique cell-based screening programme of their candidate compounds by leveragingCelsis IVT's market presence and in vitro development capabilities with Apath'sproprietary technology platforms against the HCV life cycle. Commercial launch of this programme is expected to take place in Q2 of thiscalendar year with the potential for sizeable incremental revenues to Celsis IVTover the next several years. This agreement not only provides new growthopportunities for Celsis but is consistent with Celsis' position in providingleading technologies to our customers that provide critical information toassist in the drug discovery and development process. Paul D. Olivo, M.D., Ph.D., President and CSO of Apath LLC, commented: "We are delighted to be working with Celsis and are confident that our expertisein virology and molecular biology and Celsis' leadership and depth ofunderstanding in the drug discovery and development market place will be asuccessful partnership. We therefore look forward to entering into thisagreement where our technology and proprietary know-how will assist indeveloping a new screening method for the Hepatitis C virus." Jay LeCoque, Chief Executive Officer of Celsis, said: "This market development agreement with Apath LLC is another significant stepfor our Celsis IVT business and demonstrates the substantive progress thatCelsis is delivering to this field. We are pleased to partner with Apath whohave assembled a leading intellectual property portfolio in supporting thepharmaceutical and biotechnology industries in their quest to find solutions totreat or prevent Hepatitis C." Enquiries: Celsis International plc Tel: 01223 598 428Jay LeCoque, Chief Executive OfficerChristian Madrolle, Finance Director and Company Secretary Financial Dynamics Tel: 020 7831 3113Ben AtwellDavid Yates Notes to editors Celsis International plc Celsis International plc is a world leading provider of innovative life scienceproducts and laboratory services to the pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, andconsumer products industries through its three business areas; rapid detection,analytical and drug development services and ADME-Tox in vitro technologies.The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange (CEL.L) Each division of Celsis International plc has the capacity to deliversubstantial time and cost savings to its customers, in addition to ensuringproduct quality and safety for consumers. Celsis Rapid Detection divisionutilises proprietary enzyme technology to develop and supply diagnostic testinginstruments and consumables for the rapid detection of microbial contaminationin pharmaceutical and consumer products. These rapid testing systems providesignificant economic value by reducing the time it takes to test and release rawmaterials, in process and finished goods to market. Celsis Analytical Servicesdivision provides cost effective outsourced laboratory testing services topharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies. Its comprehensive serviceofferings include a full spectrum of laboratory services from drug developmentand discovery to analytical chemistry and biological sciences to stabilitystorage and testing. Celsis In Vitro Technologies (Celsis IVT) employsproprietary expertise in hepatocyte (liver cell) technology to supply in vitrotesting products to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. CelsisIVT's consumable testing products screen drug compounds for liver toxicity earlyin the drug discovery process, thereby reducing the time and cost of furtherdevelopment or trial on those compounds which will not be properly metabolisedby the human liver. Further information can be found on its website at www.celsis.com. Apath LLC Apath LLC is a privately held pharmaceutical discovery company, with a focus onthe application of state-of-the-art molecular virology and viral genetics in thediscovery and development of therapeutics for human viral diseases. Apath wasfounded in St. Louis, Missouri in 1997 by Charles M. Rice, Ph.D. Dr. Rice isthe Maurice R. and Corinne P. Greenberg Professor of Molecular Virology, ViralPathogenesis, Vaccine Development and Director of the Laboratory of Virology andInfectious Disease at The Rockefeller University as well as the Scientific andExecutive Director, Center for the Study of Hepatitis C, A Cooperative Endeavorof The Rockefeller University, Weill Cornell Medical College and New YorkPresbyterian Hospital. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange