RENE.L Regulatory News (RENE)

18 May 2007 07:00

ReNeuron Group plc18 May 2007 ReNeuron announces collaboration to enhance its stem cell expansion technology Guildford, UK, 18 May 2007: ReNeuron Group plc (LSE: RENE.L) today announcedthat it has signed a Research Collaboration Agreement with King's College Londonto further develop the Company's c-mycER stem cell expansion technology. Theresearch will be part-funded by the UK government under its Knowledge TransferPartnership (KTP) scheme. Dr Michael Antoniou, who heads the Nuclear Biology Group in the Department ofMedical and Molecular Genetics at King's, will develop new delivery constructsto enhance the efficiency and safety of the c-mycER transgene when used to growstem cell lines. Dr John Sinden, Chief Scientific Officer of ReNeuron, said: "We have already successfully scaled up our ReN001 cell line for stroke usingour c-mycER platform. Having demonstrated that the technology works well in ourlead therapeutic programme, we are looking to this collaboration to enhanceefficiency when selecting and scaling future cell line products using c-mycER.We believe this will ultimately lead to shorter therapeutic developmenttimelines for ReNeuron's stem cell therapies. The UK government's support forthis collaboration through the KTP scheme will assist in ensuring that theprogramme realises its aims in the shortest possible timeframe." Enquiries: ReNeuronMichael Hunt, Chief Executive Officer Tel: +44 (0) 1483 302560Dr John Sinden, Chief Scientific Officer Financial DynamicsDavid Yates Tel: +44 (0) 20 7831 3113Nicola Daley Notes to Editors About ReNeuron ReNeuron is a leading, UK-based stem cell therapy business. It is applying itsnovel stem cell platform technologies in the development of ground-breaking stemcell therapies to serve significant and unmet or poorly-met clinical needs. ReNeuron has used its c-mycER technology to generate genetically stable neuralstem cell lines. This technology platform has multi-national patent protectionand is fully regulated by means of a chemically-induced safety switch. Cellgrowth can therefore be completely arrested prior to in vivo implantation. ReNeuron has filed for approval to commence initial clinical studies in the USwith its lead ReN001 stem cell therapy for chronic stroke disability. Thisrepresents the world's first such filing concerning a neural stem cell treatmentfor a major neurological disorder. ReNeuron has also generated pre-clinicalefficacy data with its ReN005 stem cell therapy for Huntington's disease, agenetic and fatal neurodegenerative disorder that affects around 1 in 10,000people. This programme is in pre-clinical development. In addition to itsstroke and Huntington's disease programmes, ReNeuron is developing stem celltherapies for Parkinson's disease, Type 1 diabetes and diseases of the retina. ReNeuron has also leveraged its stem cell technologies into non-therapeuticareas - its ReNcellTM range of cell lines for use in research and in drugdiscovery applications in the pharmaceutical industry. ReNeuron's ReNcellTM CXand ReNcellTM VM neural cell lines are marketed worldwide under license byMillipore Corporation. ReNeuron's shares are traded on the London AIM market under the symbol RENE.L. Further information on ReNeuron and its products can be found atwww.reneuron.com. About King's College LondonKing's College London is the fourth oldest university in England with more than13,700 undergraduates and nearly 5,600 graduate students in nine schools ofstudy based at five London campuses. It is a member of the Russell Group: acoalition of the UK's major research-based universities. The College has had 24of its subject-areas awarded the highest rating of 5* and 5 for researchquality, demonstrating excellence at an international level, and it has recentlyreceived an excellent result in its audit by the Quality Assurance Agency. King's has a particularly distinguished reputation in the humanities, law,international relations, medicine, nursing and the sciences, and has played amajor role in many of the advances that have shaped modern life, such as thediscovery of the structure of DNA. It is the largest centre for the educationof healthcare professionals in Europe and is home to five Medical ResearchCouncil Centres - more than any other university. King's is in the top group of UK universities for research earnings, with incomefrom grants and contracts of more than £100 million, and has an annual turnoverof more than £363 million. Data sources: UK Stroke Association; American Stroke Association. This announcement contains forward-looking statements with respect to thefinancial condition, results of operations and business achievements/performanceof ReNeuron and certain of the plans and objectives of management of ReNeuronwith respect thereto. These statements may generally, but not always, beidentified by the use of words such as "should", "expects", "estimates","believes" or similar expressions. This announcement also containsforward-looking statements attributed to certain third parties relating to theirestimates regarding the growth of markets and demand for products. By theirnature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because theyreflect ReNeuron's current expectations and assumptions as to future events andcircumstances that may not prove accurate. A number of factors could causeReNeuron's actual financial condition, results of operations and businessachievements/performance to differ materially from the estimates made or impliedin such forward-looking statements and, accordingly, reliance should not beplaced on such statements. The terms 'ReNeuron', 'the Company' or 'the Group' used in this statement referto ReNeuron Group plc and/or its subsidiary undertakings, depending on thecontext. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange