Archive: Company News
Company News: Anergis Obtains Core Technology Patent in Japan
– Patent covers Contiguous Overlapping Peptide technology for the development of ultra-fast allergy vaccines –
Anergis, a company focusing on proprietary allergy vaccines, today announced it was granted a Japanese patent on its key technology from the Japanese Patent Office. The patent #5389326 broadly covers the Contiguous Overlapping Peptide (COP) technology which is used by Anergis to define and select new products for the ultra-fast treatment of multiple allergies.
“We have already been granted patents protecting our COP technology in the U.S. and Australia,” said Christophe Reymond, CSO of Anergis. “COPs are pharmaceutical quality products that provide the complete allergen sequence covering all T cell epitopes, but do not elicit allergic hypersensitivity. Therefore, COPs can be administered safely at high doses to induce tolerance to the allergen after a few injections only.”
He added that Anergis has already demonstrated in Phase I/IIa and IIb trials that just five injections of its lead COP allergy vaccine AllerT over a period of two months were sufficient to achieve long-lasting immunological effects as well as seasonal symptom reductions in allergic patients, similar to conventional allergy immunotherapy.
“Obtaining patent protection in Japan is an important milestone for Anergis because the Japanese population suffers from numerous allergies, particularly to house dust mites and to Japanese cedar,” said Vincent Charlon, CEO of Anergis.
Anergis’ COP technology can be applied to a broad spectrum of allergy indications. At present, Anergis is developing AllerT for the treatment of birch pollen allergy, AllerR for ragweed pollen allergies and AllerDM for dust mite allergies.
Company News: Curetis and Laboratorios LETI Sign Exclusive Distribution Agreement for Unyvero™ in Spain and Portugal
– Five-year agreement based on extensive health economic assessment –
Curetis AG today announced that the company has closed an exclusive distribution agreement in Spain and Portugal with Laboratorios LETI, which includes all existing and future Unyvero™ instruments and consumables. LETI is a biopharmaceutical company based in Tres Cantos, near Madrid, Spain. Its diagnostics business unit distributes and markets a broad portfolio of in vitro diagnostics (IVD) and research products, among other offerings.
The agreement, effective January 1, 2014, was finalized following positive market feedback and favorable outcome of a joint, extensive health economic assessment which included four major hospitals in Spain and Portugal. The commercial launch of Unyvero™ in this region is expected in the first quarter of 2014.
For the implementation, Curetis will provide Unyvero training, marketing materials and supporting health economic research. LETI will manage all marketing and sales activities as well as storage and logistics support. The partners are targeting a market share of more than 50 percent of relevant hospitals and ICU units in the region within the next five years.
Company News: Anergis Appoints Dr. Dino Dina to its Board of Directors
– Company appoints seasoned US vaccine and biotech executive –
Anergis, a company focusing on proprietary allergy vaccines, today announced the appointment of Dino Dina, MD, to its Board of Directors. Dr. Dina brings extensive expertise in the research and development of vaccines for allergy, cancer and infectious diseases as well as in building successful US biopharmaceutical companies.
From 1998 to 2013, Dr. Dina served as Chief Executive Officer of Dynavax Technologies Corporation and has been a member of Dynavax´ Board of Directors since 1997. During his tenure, he secured extensive financing through corporate alliances (UCB, Sanofi, AstraZeneca, GSK, Merck), private financings, an initial public offering (2004), and a series of public equity financings. Prior to joining Dynavax, Dr. Dina held a series of positions with increasing responsibility at Chiron Corporation, where he ultimately served as President of Chiron Vaccines. Under Dr. Dina’s direction, Chiron Vaccines received the first-ever approval of an adjuvanted influenza vaccine in Italy, successfully completed development of the first genetically engineered pertussis vaccine, and conducted clinical trials for vaccines to prevent HIV, herpes simplex type II, cytomegalovirus, and hepatitis B infections.