Last checked at 28 Jul 2008 07:30
Physiomics plc
The Magdalen Centre
The Oxford Science ParkRobert Robinson AvenueOxford
OX4 4GAUK
Tel 01865 784980
Fax 08701 671931
28 July 2008
Physiomics plc ("Physiomics" or "the Company")
Trading Statement
Physiomics plc (AIM: PYC), the Oxford, UK based systems biology company, is pleased to update the market on its current trading. The Company has recently secured new contracts (some of which are contracts that will last beyond the current financial year), which together with grant income arising from the extension of the TEMPO contract will, subject to achievement of deliverables under these contracts, result in revenue and grant income for the year ending 30 June 2009 of at least £440,000. Physiomics has entered into negotiation with a pharmaceutical company to out-license its technology and in addition, the Company is expecting to secure additional contracts for the current financial period. Turnover for the six months ended 31 December 2007 amounted to £55,271.
Since the publication of its interim results for the period ended 31 December 2007, Physiomics announced on 20 May the successful completion of its mid-term milestone of the 3 year EU project TEMPO. In addition, on 14 July Physiomics announced a major extension to its collaboration with Eli Lilly and Company ("Lilly") following the successful completion of a first project. These achievements resulted from significant technical advances made by the Physiomics team. As part of the TEMPO project, Physiomics has extended its technology to enable the design of optimal cancer drug dosing schedules by taking into account circadian rhythms. By changing the time of day when a certain drug is given, it is possible to both increase its efficacy and decrease its toxicity. The Company has already received expression of interest from a number of bio-pharmaceutical companies seeking to license such new chronotherapeutic schedules for their existing drug and could lead to milestone and royalty payments.
The biological models are supported by sophisticated simulation software environments developed recently by the team including:
A stand-alone simulation platform ("Model Player") incorporating a reference database to allow in-house use of Physiomics' technology by third parties.
A new version of the proprietary SystemCell® technology running on the IBM "Blue C" super computer at the Institute of Life Sciences at Swansea University. This allows us to reduce typical computing times from many hours to just a few minutes, giving Physiomics a significant technological edge for its fee for service business.
The initial project conducted with Lilly has demonstrated the effectiveness of our SystemCell® technology to simulate cancer drugs. This triggered two new projects that should show the usefulness of Physiomics' approach in two areas of primary importance in cancer drug development: patient stratification ("personalized medicine") and drug combination (use of a new drug with an existing one). Following the recent confidence shown in Physiomics' technologies by this global drug discovery company with extensive experience in systems biology, Physiomics' directors expect that new contracts will emerge from our ongoing discussions with other major pharmaceutical companies. Commenting on the forecast, Physiomics' Chief Operating Officer, Dr Christophe Chassagnole, said: "In addition to good revenue visibility, we are confident that these recent advances maintain our technology at the cutting-edge of computational biological simulation. Recent recommendations by the FDA and EMEA to use bio-simulation for clinical testing and regulatory approval mean that modelling approaches will be increasingly adopted within the pharmaceutical industry. All of this confirms our belief that Physiomics can take advantage of such markets and rapidly become a profitable business."
For further information:
Physiomics plc +44 (0)1865 784980
Dr Christophe Chassagnole, COO
E-mail: cchassagnole@physiomics-plc.com
Grant Thornton UK LLP +44 (0)20 7383 5100
Colin Aaronson, Philip Secrett
About Physiomics plc
Physiomics plc (AIM:PYC) is a computational systems biology services company applying simulations of cell behaviour to drug development to reduce the high attrition rates of clinical trials. As 80-90 per cent of all clinical drug candidates fail to reach the market, estimates1 show that an overall ten per cent improvement in success rates could reduce the cost of one drug's development by as much as $242 million, from the current estimate of around $800 million. Physiomics develops computational systems biology models to predict and understand cancer drug efficacy from pre-clinical research to clinical development. Physiomics has created detailed mathematical models incorporating the most important molecular events taking place during the human cell cycle and apoptosis processes. Physiomics has developed SystemCell® technology, a multi-cellular environment software, enabling the simulation of population of "virtual cells".
Physiomics, based in Oxford, UK, was founded in 2001, and floated on AIM in 2004. For further information, please visit www.physiomics-plc.com
SystemCell® is a registered trademark of Physiomics plc
1Tufts Centre Impact Report 2002