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| VGX
Pharmaceuticals Announces a License Agreement
with Inovio Biomedical to Develop Novel Cancer Therapeutics
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| Blue
Bell, PA – November 14, 2006 – |
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VGX Pharmaceuticals announced today that the Company
has entered into a worldwide non-exclusive license with Inovio Biomedical
Corp. for their patent DNA delivery technology to use in the intratumoral
delivery of a proprietary gene to control the growth of melanoma and other
cancers. Under the terms of the agreement, VGX will pay Inovio an upfront
license fee and payments based on successful completion of clinical and
regulatory milestones. VGX will in return be exclusively supplied with
Inovio’s electroporation devices for the therapy included in the
license agreement and will also pay Inovio royalties on the sale of products
covered by the license.
The peer-reviewed journal Molecular Therapy recently published a scientific
paper (1) describing VGX data from a mouse model showing complete regression
of established melanoma tumors after delivery, using electroporation,
of the VGX gene in the form of a plasmid (VGX 150). Dr. David Weiner,
VGX co-founder and co-author of the scientific paper, said, “Bringing
together the combination of exciting Inovio technology for drug delivery
with VGX’s innovative technology for tumor killing provides a novel
and important opportunity to attack and treat previously untreatable cancers.
In my opinion, this partnership will significantly propel the field of
biotechnology forward.”
VGX is preparing to file an Investigational New Drug Application (IND)
for VGX-150 and expects to initiate a Phase I clinical trail in the first
quarter of 2007.
“Our enabling MedPulsar® DNA EPT System is currently being tested
in melanoma with a number of cytokine genes. VGX’s proprietary viral
gene sequence may have important anti-tumor effects independent of immune
response and represents a new approach to treating cancer,” stated
Avtar Dhillon, MD, president and CEO of Inovio. “Dr. Weiner is well-recognized
for his leadership in helping pioneer the field of DNA vaccines and we
are delighted to add VGX to the growing list of corporate licensees using
our technology."
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Our actual results may vary materially, and there are no guarantees
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About
VGX Pharmaceuticals
VGX Pharmaceuticals is a leading biopharmaceutical company with strong product
candidates for the treatment of infectious diseases including HIV and hepatitis
C virus (HCV) as well as cancer and inflammatory diseases. The Company’s
clinical development programs include PICTOVIR™ for HIV infection
and VGX-410C for chronic HCV infection, which are currently in Phase II
clinical trials. In addition, a Phase I clinical trial will be initiated
in 2007 for the Company’s lead cancer drug compound, VGX-150 for the
treatment of Melanoma. Moreover, VGX Pharmaceuticals’ therapeutic
platform is designed to advance a strong and continual pipeline of additional
drug candidates into the clinic with VGX-100 for cancer therapy and VGX-1027
and VGX-750 for inflammatory diseases currently in development. The product
candidates and technology programs are protected by the Company’s
extensive global intellectual property portfolio. More information about
VGX can be found at www.vgxp.com.
Company Contact:
Kevin W. Rassas
Senior Vice President
Tel. 267.440.4208
Fax 267.440.4242
E-mail: Rassas@vgxp.com
www.vgxp.com
About Inovio Biomedical Corporation
Inovio Biomedical Corporation is a late stage biomedical company focused
on commercializing its proprietary Selective Electrochemical Tumor Ablation
(SECTA) therapy and development of multiple DNA vaccines using its delivery
platform for gene-based treatments. SECTA is designed for local treatment
of solid tumors, with selective killing of cancer cells while preserving
surrounding health tissue. Inovio is moving its lead product, the MedPulsar®,
through pre-marketing studies for head and neck cancers in Europe, where
it has CE Mark accreditation, a U.S. Phase III pivotal study for head
and neck cancer, and a Phase I trial for breast cancer. Inovio’s
DNA delivery partners include Merck, Wyeth, Vical, Tripep, University
of Southampton, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center, U.S. Army, Innogenetics
and Pharmexa, with six gene-based therapies and DNA vaccines in Phase
I clinical studies. Inovio is a leader in developing human therapeutic
applications of electroporation and DNA vaccination, with the industry’s
most extensive patent portfolio covering in vivo electroporation. More
information is available at www.inovio.com.
About Inovio’s DNA Delivery Technology for Tumors
Direct intratumoral delivery of genes encoding therapeutic proteins, using
electroporation to dramatically enhance cellular uptake and expression
of plasmid-based genes, represents a novel form of cancer therapy that
along with skin and muscle DNA vaccination is a key part of the overall
DNA delivery franchise being developed by Inovio. Intratumoral delivery
of therapeutic genes may bypass some of the detrimental systemic effects
of conventional cancer therapy. Recent studies in a mouse model of melanoma
demonstrated considerable efficiency in causing the regression of established
tumors after delivery of VGX’s gene with Inovio’s electroporation
technology.
(1) Molecular Therapy, November 2006, “Complete regression of established
subcutaneous B16 murine melanoma tumors after delivery of an HIV-1 Vpr-expressing
plasmid by in vivo electroporation”. McCray AN, Ugen KE, Muthumani
K, Kim JJ, Weiner DB, Heller R.
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