GammaCan International Announces approval of a $1M Grant from the BIRD Foundation to Develop Anti-Cancer Therapy Drug; Life The
June 21 2006 - 2:30PM
Business Wire
GammaCan International (OTCBB:GCAN), and Life Therapeutics
(ASX:LFE) today announced a joint effort to develop VitiGam, an
innovative anti-cancer product designed to target metastatic
malignant melanoma patients with Stage III and IV disease, in
connection with a grant to be provided by the BIRD Foundation. The
approval of the $1M grant is subject to the execution of a
Cooperation and Project Funding Agreement between the companies and
the Foundation within the next four months. In addition, during
this time, the companies must finalize the project structure, cost
and timelines. "We are extremely pleased to have been approved for
this grant by the foundation," said Patrick Schnegelsberg, CEO of
GammaCan. "This positive assessment is the first outside review
since we announced our shift in focus onto VitiGam. The
Foundation's independent body has thoroughly evaluated our business
plan and we are pleased and proud to be a part of their
distinguished stable of companies. This award further strengthens
Israeli-US efforts to jointly grow the biotechnology sector." Dr.
Hari Nair, CEO of Life Therapeutics said, "We are looking forward
to working with GammaCan on this project which will utilize
specialty plasma from our plasma collection centers as well as the
potential use of the Gradiflow, our patented, preparative
electrophoresis system." About VitiGam: VitiGam is GammaCan's
second generation intravenous IgG-based product and a
first-in-class anti-cancer immunotherapy. GammaCan plans on having
VitiGam enter phase I/II testing under a US IND in the near future
after recently holding a pre-IND meeting with the FDA. VitiGam is
being designed to target metastatic melanoma patients with Stage
III and IV melanoma. VitiGam is an IgG product that is different
from standard IgGs: It is manufactured from the plasma of donors
with vitiligo, a benign autoimmune skin condition affecting up to
2% of the general population. GammaCan scientists have shown that
this "enriched" vitiligo IgG (VitiGam) contains potent
anti-melanoma activity in both in vitro and mouse xenograft
melanoma models. Thus, GammaCan expects VitiGam to provide (1)
anti-melanoma activity directed specifically against malignant
melanoma cells and (2) non-specific anti-cancer activity - as is
the case with IgG in general. About the BIRD Foundation: The
Israel-U.S. Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD)
Foundation promotes strategic partnerships between Israeli and
American companies in various technological fields. BIRD assists,
free of charge, in the identification of strategic partners for
development of joint products. The BIRD Foundation funds are repaid
only as royalties on actual sales. The Foundation provides funding
of up to 50% of project expenses, from R&D to the initial
stages of sales and marketing. In projects that do not reach actual
sales, BIRD participates in the risk without demanding repayment of
its investment. The BIRD Foundation works in full cooperation with
the Office of the Chief Scientist of the Israeli Ministry of
Industry and Trade and the American National Institute of Standards
and Technology (NIST). About GammaCan: GammaCan is a
biopharmaceutical company focused on clinical-phase development and
commercialization. GammaCan's initial therapy under development is
a first-in-class anti-cancer immunotherapy aimed at preventing
metastasis (the spread of cancer to other parts of the body) of a
variety of cancers. GammaCan's first generation product (GCAN101)
is currently completing phase II - clinical trials. About Life
Therapeutics: Life Therapeutics is an international company that
specializes in niche therapeutic hyperimmune products. It has 14
plasma collection centers around the US and has considerable
experience recruiting and collecting hard to find hyperimmune
plasma for IND studies and clinical trials Life Therapeutics has
479 employees, located in Australia and the United States with
manufacturing operations in both countries and 14 plasma donor
centers in eight American states. It recently established its U.S.
American Depositary Receipt (ADR) Level I program which enables
trading in Life Therapeutics shares by U.S. based investors and is
an important step toward the company's ultimate objective of
achieving a full listing on NASDAQ stock exchange. The company's
four divisions are all headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and
include: Life Sera, Life Gels, Life Diagnostics, and Life
Manufacturing. Life Sera collects specialty plasma, including
Anti-D and Hepatitis B from a donor base of more than 5,000 in
fourteen U.S. collection centers. The plasma is then sold to blood
fractionators who process it into hyperimmune therapeutic products.
Life Gels offers pre-cast gels for use in biological research and
diagnostic testing, including a variety of electrophoresis systems.
It also offers ultra-sensitive and rapid stains, molecular weight
markers, and specially formulated buffers. Life Diagnostics
provides highly specific diagnostic tests for blood-clotting
disorders and source plasma products for blood-borne diseases.
Technologies include specialized blood coagulation tests to predict
the risk of thrombosis and bleeding disorders. It also collects
high-titer source plasma and serum used to make diagnostic kits.
Life Manufacturing incorporates the Gradiflow(TM) technology with
the manufacture of therapeutic and diagnostic products.
Gradiflow(TM) is a patented process that simultaneously purifies
proteins and removes all viral pathogens, and infectious prion
proteins. For more information, visit the companies' websites:
www.GammaCan.com and www.life-therapeutics.com . Safe Harbor
Statement: Statements in this document that are not purely
historical are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements in this release include statements regarding the
commercialization of an anti-cancer immunotherapy and the Company
developing the boosting of cancer patients' immune systems with
IVIg into an effective treatment. Actual outcomes and the Company's
actual results could differ materially from those in such
forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results
to differ materially include risks and uncertainties such as the
inability to finance the planned development of the technology,
unforeseen technical difficulties in developing the technology, the
inability to obtain regulatory approval for human use, competitors'
therapies proving more effective, cheaper or otherwise preferable
for consumers, inability to market the product we produce, among
other factors, all of which could among other things, delay or
prevent product release or cause our company to fail. For further
risk factors see the risk factors associated with other early state
medical research and development companies filed with the SEC on
Edgar.
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