Lipoxen receives funding for Malaria Vaccine Initiative
Agreements with the PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative and US NIAID
Preclinical feasibility project to determine ability of Lipoxen's Liposomal Technology to stimulate enhanced immune responses against malaria protein
LONDON, May 14, 2009--Lipoxen PLC (AIM: LPX), a bio-pharmaceutical company specialising in the development of high-value differentiated biologicals, vaccines and siRNA delivery, announces today that the Company has received funding to apply its ground-breaking ImuXen® technology to enhance the performance of malaria vaccine candidates. The PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative, a program of the non-profit organization, PATH, will provide funding for the project. Scientists from the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), a component of the US National Institutes of Health, will provide expertise to the project, which is anticipated to report results in mid-2010.
The project will apply Lipoxen's patented technology with a view to improving the ultimate performance and efficacy of malaria vaccines. Lipoxen will be responsible for the development of an optimised malaria vaccine formulation, while NIAID scientists will be responsible for evaluating its activity in a relevant pre-clinical model.
Lipoxen's proprietary ImuXen® technology is based on the use of natural substances found in the human body (liposomes) to entrap the active ingredients (a malaria antigen in this project) to ensure their direct delivery to the appropriate cells of the immune system, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of vaccines by generating strong and broadly based immune responses. The resulting immune responses are expected to be much stronger and more rapid than with vaccines delivered by conventional means. The Company's liposomal formulations are also expected to minimise the side effects of vaccination as a result of the containment and slow release of the active materials.
Commenting on this announcement, M. Scott Maguire, CEO of Lipoxen, said: "The scourge that is malaria causes a death every 30 seconds in Africa alone. With funding from PATH we will explore whether our technology is suitable for malaria vaccines. The decision by NIAID, a world-leading biomedical research organization, to participate in this project will unquestionably accelerate this exploration.
"Lipoxen has other globally important vaccine candidates in its pipeline - including one against HIV. 2.1 million deaths in 2007 were attributed to HIV infection; this equates to 4 deaths per minute. The Company is also working alongside the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), the world's leading AIDS vaccine organization, on the improved delivery of HIV vaccine candidates. This is yet another externally funded research project with considerable potential to alleviate suffering in the developing world and beyond. We also have a novel influenza vaccine candidate in development that has recently produced positive results in preclinical studies.
"Our Company is rapidly building a reputation in the field of novel vaccine development and delivery and each of these projects demonstrate Lipoxen's desire and commitment to help solve some of the gravest problems afflicting humanity." - Ends -
For further information please contact:
Lipoxen plc +44 (0)20 7691 3583 M. Scott Maguire, Chief Executive Officer
Singer Capital Markets (nominated adviser) +44 (0)20 3205 7500 Jeff Keating / Claes Spång
Noble & Company +44 (0) 20 7763 2200 John Llewellyn-Lloyd / Sam Reynolds
Buchanan Communications +44 (0)20 7466 5000 Mary-Jane Elliott, Lisa Baderoon, Rebecca Skye Dietrich, Catherine Breen
Documents Attached[1]
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