Recent Tech Transfer Deals (07/2003)
This article was originally published in Start Up
Executive Summary
Summarizing the month in tech transfer deals between Academia and Industry.
In Vitro Diagnostics
AntiCancer Inc.
(San Diego, CA) — www.anticancer.com — 619-654-2555
Roswell Park Cancer Institute
(Buffalo, NY) — www.roswellpark.org — 716-845-2300
AntiCancer, Roswell Inst. develop cancer imaging technology
Jun.—AntiCancer (cancer drugs and diagnostics) and Roswell Park Cancer Institute will combine a new high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system with the company's green fluorescence protein (GFP) imaging to develop a tool that evaluates the effects of cancer drugs in mice in vivo.
AntiCancer and Roswell Park have already studied the MRI system in mice with metastatic cancer that were given an experimental cancer compound. Via real-time visualization, they found the therapeutic agent inhibited growth in liver metastases better than standard treatments. AntiCancer's GFP imaging method takes fluorescent proteins from bioluminescent jellyfish and coral and introduces them into tumor cells for noninvasive visualization ex vivo. Under the new collaboration, the company and institute intend to provide dual-modality, high-throughput imaging for in vivo screening and evaluation of potential cancer drugs.
Tm Bioscience Corp.
(Toronto, Ontario, Canada) — www.tmbioscience.com — 416-593-4323
The Hospital for Sick Children
(Toronto, Ontario, Canada) — www.sickkids.on.ca/research — 416-813-5982
University of Michigan
(Ann Arbor, MI) — www.med.techtransfer.umich.edu — 734-763-6363
Tm Bioscience gets rights to cystic fibrosis patents
Jun.—Tm Bioscience (DNA-based diagnostics) has licensed nonexclusive rights to The Hospital for Sick Children and the University of Michigan's cystic fibrosis (CF) gene mutation patents.
The company will use the licensed technology in its Tag-It mutation detection kit for CF, which will be marketed later this year. Earlier this month, Tm Bioscience raised $3.79mm ($Cdn5mm) with a private placement and launched its Tag-It mutation detection kit for P450-2D6 to determine if a patient has atypical metabolism. It expects the diagnostic to benefit laboratories and drug developers since about 20% of the drugs that are currently prescribed are metabolized by enzymes derived from P450-2D6.
Pharmaceuticals
Aastrom Biosciences Inc.
(Ann Arbor, MI) — www.aastrom.com — 734-930-5555
Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation
(Edison, NJ) — www.mtf.org — 732-661-0202
Aastrom, MTF collaborate in tissue regeneration
Jun.—Aastrom Biosciences (develops therapies based on human stem cells) and the Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation will jointly develop and commercialize treatments to regenerate tissues, including bone and cartilage.
Aastrom will combine its tissue repair cells (TRCs) with MTF's allograft (donated tissue) matrices to initially develop bone graft treatments that eliminate the need for painful surgeries to remove bone from the patient (autograft). The parties later plan to create methods for regenerating joint cartilage and develop combination therapies that utilize MTF's ceramic matrix technology and the TRCs. By combining bone progenitor cells with allograft tissues, it is thought that grafts can be developed which are very similar to a patient's own tissue. Aastrom's TRCs are a stem cell mixture derived from a sample of patient cells and have demonstrated the ability in clinical trials to generate normal human tissues safely and effectively and in larger quantities than the patient's bone marrow. It is estimated that each year there are more than 1.4mm bone graft procedures performed, such as dental defects and facial bone repair, spinal fusions, and non-union fractures.
Connex GMBH
(Martinsried , Germany) — www.connex.de — (49) 898 996 350
Genmab AS
(Copenhagen, Denmark) — www.genmab.com — (45) 7020 2728
French National Institute for Health (INSERM)
(Paris, France) — www.inserm.fr — (33) 144 236 045
Genmab acquires hepatitis C antibody from Connex
Jul.—Danish antibody company Genmab AS has licensed all rights to a human hepatitis C antibody jointly owned by Connex (German company that develops MAbs) and the French National Institute for Health (INSERM).
For the license, including all IP and a cell line for further preclinical development, Genmab paid $1mm up front, and is responsible for milestones and royalties to both parties on any resulting product. The antibody reacts to the E2 envelope glycoprotein that is expressed on the surface of the hepatitis C virus. E2 is important in the susceptibility of target cells to hepatitis, and it is believed that the licensed antibody blocks the binding of E2 and prevents infection. Genmab will solely continue R&D to develop the antibody to treat and prevent hepatitis C infection, and will add the antibody to its clinical pipeline of antibody candidates to treat conditions such as lymphoma, autoimmune diseases, psoriasis, and organ transplant rejection.
Senetek PLC
(Napa, CA) — www.senetekplc.com — 707-226-3900
Institute of Experimental Botany
(Prague, Lysolaje, Czech Republic) — www.ueb.cas.cz — (420) 220 390 111
Senetek signs agreement with Institute of Experimental Botany
Jun.—Senetek (sexual dysfunction and anti-aging therapeutics) has licensed exclusive rights to all chemical- and botanical-based products and scientific data for dermatological applications from the Institute of Experimental Botany (plant genetics) in Prague.
Hoping to build up its dermatological therapeutics portfolio, Senetek will also work with IEB on product development; it has an option for an exclusive worldwide license to resulting medical and cosmetic products. The company's lead skin care product is the cytokinin Kinetin, a plant growth factor--also found in the human body--involved in DNA tissue repair. It acts as an antioxidant to reduce signs of aging and stall the aging process in human skin cells. Kinetin is out-licensed to diverse companies, which market the product under various brand names for both cosmetic and medical uses. Senetek's other product is the Phase III Invicorp, a therapy for erectile dysfunction. IEB's fields of science involve induced mutagenesis, DNA repair, and induction of genetic variability in tissue and cell cultures. The research, led by IEB's Prof. Ivana Machackova, focuses on the study of cell regulatory and division mechanisms in plant growth to better understand their workings within the human cell cycle.
Research/Analytical
Agilent Technologies Inc.
(Palo Alto, CA) — www.agilent.com — 650-752-5000
Novartis AG
(Basel, Switzerland) — www.novartis.com — (41) 6324 8000
Genomics Inst. of the Novartis Research Foundation
(San Diego, CA) — www.gnf.org — 858-812-1500
Agilent gets technology from Novartis's Genomics Institute
Jun.—Agilent Technologies received an exclusive worldwide license from the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation to apply its technology to proteomics-based drug research.
The Genomics Institute's technology is a chemical reagent that can derive and tag protein samples using multidimensional liquid chromatography (LC) or gel electrophoresis. It offers enhanced sensitivity in mass spectrometry (MS) and will enable proteomics scientists to identify new drug targets, therapeutic molecules, and disease markers. Agilent plans to sell the technology in a kit format in combination with its own AP-MALDI and LC/MS hardware and software systems.