Board Appointment

27 Apr 2007 16:02

Immupharma PLC27 April 2007 For Immediate Release 30 April 2007 ImmuPharma PLC Board Appointment ImmuPharma PLC (LSE:IMM), ("ImmuPharma" or the "Company"), the specialist drugdiscovery and development company, today announces the appointment of AjayAgrawal (42) as a non-executive director. Dr Agrawal has almost 20 years' experience in the biotech and pharmaceuticalindustry worldwide. He was a founder of polyMASC Pharmaceuticals plc, London in1995, the first UK biotech company, derived from a university that was directlylisted on AIM, raising approximately $40 million in 1995, and subsequentlymerged with a NASDAQ-listed company, Valentis Inc (USA) in 1999 to become one ofthe biggest companies in the delivery of biologics at that time. He currently sits on the editorial advisory board of three international tradejournals, Current Drug Delivery, Infectious Disorders- Drug Targets, and RecentPatents on Drug Delivery and Formulation, Bentham Press, California, USA. Richard Warr, Chairman, commented on the appointment: "We are pleased to welcome Dr Agrawal to the Board and look forward to utilisinghis experience in the sector." There is nothing further to disclose in relation to the appointment of AjayAgrawal under paragraph (g) of Schedule 2 of the AIM Rules. For further information please contact: ImmuPharma PLC:Dimitri Dimitriou, Chief Executive +44 20 7152 4080OfficerRichard Warr, Chairman +44 20 7152 4080 Buchanan Communications + 44 20 7466 5000Lisa BaderoonRebecca Skye Dietrich Notes to Editors: About ImmuPharma ImmuPharma PLC is a drug discovery and development company headquartered inLondon, UK and quoted on AIM of the London Stock Exchange (LSE:IMM). It hasresearch operations in France (ImmuPharma (France) SA) and Switzerland(ImmuPharma AG). ImmuPharma is dedicated to the development of novel drugs,largely based on peptide therapeutics, to treat serious medical conditions suchas autoimmune diseases characterised by: * blockbuster potential in niche markets * low promotional costs in few specialised physicians and centres and * lower risk of drug development and lower development costs ImmuPharma is a currently developing drug candidates for three different medicalconditions, each of which would represent a significant breakthrough in itsfield. The furthest advanced drug candidate targets Lupus, a disease for whichthere is currently no cure or specific treatment. The other two address moderateto severe pain (such as that experienced by cancer sufferers and post-operativepatients), and MRSA and similar severe hospital-acquired resistant infections. All three have significant sales potential as well as low marketing costs and arelatively low risk of development failure. One or more have the potential to befast-tracked by the US Food and Drug Administration according to "Guidance forIndustry: Fast Track Drug Development Programs - Designation, Development andApplication Review" issued July 2004 and could therefore obtain their marketauthorization by 2010. Key to the potential success of ImmuPharma is its unique collaborative agreementwith Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, France's scientific researchinstitution. This agreement grants ImmuPharma worldwide exclusive rights toexploit certain key discoveries. In addition to its three leading drug candidates, ImmuPharma has a drugdevelopment pipeline using its rights to a virtual chemical library of hundredsof thousands of molecules as well as an innovative technology for convertingpeptides to drug candidates. ImmuPharma has the option to commercialise its assets itself or to license themto other pharmaceutical companies at an earlier stage. The products Treatment of Lupus (IPP-201101) This is a long-term treatment for Lupus, a chronic, life-threatening autoimmunedisease where the immune system attacks healthy cells. There is currently nocure and existing medications only treat the symptoms whereas ImmuPharma's drugcandidate has the potential to produce remission of the disease in a substantialproportion of patients. Based on independent forecasts, the value of ImmuPharma's Lupus drug isestimated to be "substantial" with peak annual sales forecast to generate inexcess of $4 billion. Severe pain relief (IPP-102199) ImmuPharma is developing a potential non-addictive compound for relievingmoderate to severe pain, such as experienced by cancer sufferers andpost-surgical patients. Most existing treatments are derived from the opiatemorphine and tend to have serious side effects. ImmuPharma's new treatment isbased on met-enkephalin, the body's internal analgesic. IPP-102199 is beingdeveloped to have major advantages over morphine such as longer pain reliefduration and reduced side effects. The market for chronic opioids in the UScurrently exceeds $3.5 billion and is growing by more than 10 to 20 per cent ayear. Antibiotic for MRSA and similar highly resistant infections (IPP-203101) This is a novel antibiotic to combat MRSA and other severe hospital-acquired,resistant infections which affect some two million people in the US, accordingto the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ImmuPharma's drugcandidate is targeted at disrupting the membrane potential of the bacterialpathogens. It is hoped this novel approach will reduce their potential to becomeresistant. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange