TILS.L Regulatory News (TILS)

6 Sep 2005 10:27

ReGen Therapeutics PLC06 September 2005 ReGen Acquires Rights To New Use for Well Known Drug 6th September 2005 ReGen Therapeutics Plc ('ReGen' or 'the Company') announces that it has enteredinto an exclusive option arrangement with Sciencom a private company, which hasdiscovered an important new use for zolpidem, a long-established drug, currentlymarketed for the treatment of insomnia. A patent application has been filed tocover this new use. A significant body of 'open' clinical case observations has shown that zolpidemcan normalise areas of brain dormancy secondary to a primary lesion in braindamage conditions e.g. stroke, traumatic brain injury, vascular dementia andBell's palsy. The clinical effects of this dormancy reversal have beenrestoration of consciousness, swallowing, co-ordination and motor function afterstroke and traumatic brain injury. Given that stroke alone is the largest singlecause of severe disability in England and Wales, with over 250,000 people beingaffected at any one time, the Company believes that this represents asignificant medical and commercial opportunity. This reversal of dormancy has been visualised by SPECT brain scanning on dosingwith zolpidem. The clinical effect is generally proportional to the size andposition of the dormant area and correlates with drug levels in the brain/plasma. Whilst to date these effects have been achieved with existingformulations these are less than ideal for the new use, with sedation as asignificant limiting factor. ReGen is therefore looking to develop newformulations to optimise the delivery of this important clinical benefit to adiverse range of patients. With this in mind, ReGen is managing a feasibility study. Assuming the successof this study ReGen will undertake several studies, in collaboration with itsrecently acquired subsidiary Guildford Clinical Pharmacology Unit Ltd, designedto demonstrate clinical proof of principle. Positive results in these studieswill trigger a shares only option payment to Sciencom and the results will beused to find a commercial partner to complete formulation, clinical developmentand marketing. Commenting, Percy Lomax, Regen Chairman and Chief Executive said 'We are pleasedto announce the acquisition of rights to this project, consistent with ourpreviously stated intention of building our business to both diversify risk andincrease value for our shareholders. Our estimates suggest that the totalpotential world market is around $5bn per annum. It is important to note thatthis project could be in clinical trials very early next year.' For more information, please contact: Andrew MarshallMarshall Robinson RoeTel No 020 7960 6007 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange