Cancer Research Technology and The Institute of Cancer Research complete licence with Vernalis
29 September 2004
Cancer Research Technology Limited (CRT) and The Institute of Cancer Research announce that Vernalis plc has licensed exclusive worldwide rights to an anti-cancer Hsp90 inhibitor programme. The license arises from a successful tripartite research collaboration and option agreement entered into in March 2002, building on studies funded by Cancer Research UK, The Institute of Cancer Research and Wellcome Trust.
Vernalis will pay CRT and The Institute of Cancer Research a signature fee, milestone payments, royalties on sales and a proportion of sublicensing fees. Subsequent to Vernalis signing the licence agreement with CRT and The Institute of Cancer Research, on 16 th September 2004, the company has entered into an exclusive collaboration and licence agreement with the Institute for Biomedical Research Inc (Novartis).
Hsp90, a chaperone protein, is of specific interest in anti-cancer drug development as many of the signalling proteins that behave aberrantly in cancer cells require Hsp90 to ensure that they are maintained in an active form.
Professor Paul Workman, Director of the Cancer Research UK Centre for Cancer Therapeutics and leader of the Hsp90 drug development project at The Institute of Cancer Research said: “Drugs that inhibit Hsp90 have the advantage of simultaneously blocking several different pathways that are vitally important for the growth and spread of most cancers. They therefore have the potential to benefit patients with many different types of cancer and to prevent the development of drug resistance which is major limitation of current treatments.”
Keith Blundy, CRT's Chief Operating Officer, commented: “I am delighted that the research collaboration between CRT, The Institute of Cancer Research and Vernalis has culminated in this license and furthermore that the continued development of Hsp90 inhibitors has been secured by the joint research venture between Vernalis and Novartis.”
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Notes to Editors
About Cancer Research Technology Limited
Cancer Research Technology Limited (CRT) is a specialist technology transfer company which aims to develop new discoveries in cancer research for the benefit of cancer patients. CRT is wholly owned by Cancer Research UK, the largest independent funder of cancer research in the world. CRT works closely with leading international cancer scientists and their institutes to protect intellectual property arising from their research and to establish links with commercial partners. CRT facilitates the discovery, development and marketing of new cancer therapeutics, vaccines, diagnostics and enabling technologies. Further information about CRT can be found at www.cancertechnology.com.
About The Institute of Cancer Research
The Institute of Cancer Research is a centre of excellence with leading scientists working on cutting edge research. It was founded in 1909 to carry out research into the causes of cancer and to develop new strategies for its prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care. Further information about The Institute of Cancer Research can be found at www.icr.ac.uk.
About Cancer Research UK
Cancer Research UK is Europe's leading cancer charity, dedicated to research into the causes, prevention and treatment of cancer. The charity supports the work of 3,000 scientists, doctors and nurses in over 80 academic centres across the UK, with an annual scientific spend of more than £213 million. Cancer Research UK is the European leader in the development of novel anti-cancer treatments; from their discovery at the laboratory bench to early clinical trials in cancer patients. Further information about Cancer Research UK can be found at www.cancerresearchuk.org.
About Vernalis
Vernalis is a new force in UK biotechnology, with a strong cash position and significant growth potential through a combination of sales of its marketed product frovatriptan, the successful development and commercialisation of its product pipeline candidates, and through further participation in the consolidation of the biotechnology sector.
Frovatriptan is approved in the US and in 15 European countries for the acute treatment of migraine and is in Phase III trials as a short term oral prophylactic for menstrually-related migraine, a condition thought to affect over half of all women who suffer from migraine. Vernalis has recently signed a North American license agreement and co-promotion option for frovatriptan (FrovaTM in the US) with Endo Pharmaceuticals.
Vernalis's range of clinical and pre-clinical development programmes include an agreement for the development and commercialisation of its treatment for Parkinson's disease with Biogen Idec and a cancer research collaboration with Novartis. This pipeline is supplied by research programmes exploiting Vernalis' distinctive structure based drug discovery and CNS biology capabilities, and also investigating the potential of a variety of novel molecules and targets in the fields of oncology and neurology. For further information about Vernalis, please visit www.vernalis.com .
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