BioVeris Completes New License Agreement With the University of Massachusetts Amherst
December 06 2005 - 4:30PM
PR Newswire (US)
Secures Exclusive Rights to Chlamydia Vaccine Candidate Targeting
Potential Billion Dollar Market Opportunity GAITHERSBURG, Md., Dec.
6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- BioVeris Corporation (NASDAQ:BIOV)
announced today that it has exercised its option to enter into an
exclusive, worldwide license agreement with the University of
Massachusetts Amherst (UMA) for patent rights to a proprietary
vaccine candidate for Chlamydia, the most frequently reported
infectious disease in the United States. Under the agreement with
UMA, the Company has licensed exclusive rights to commercialize
products for possible use in the prevention, diagnosis and
treatment of all chlamydial infections, including the disease,
Chlamydia, caused by the bacterium, Chlamydia trachomatis. The
Company will pay UMA a $75,000 license issue fee, milestones fees,
including for initiating and completing human clinical trials and
securing regulatory approvals, patent costs, and royalties on
product sales, including a minimum annual royalty of $40,000
commencing in 2007. In May 2005, the Company and UMA entered into a
separate Sponsored Research Agreement with the Carbohydrate Based
Vaccine Group, comprised of Drs. Lloyd Semprevivo, Elizabeth Stuart
and Wilmore Webley, under which the Company will sponsor up to
$600,000 of research at UMA through 2006 aimed at developing a
vaccine. The vaccine under investigation utilizes a pan-genus
antigen that may be effective in preventing infections caused by
most or all species of Chlamydia. Chlamydia is a sexually
transmitted disease caused by Chlamydia trachomatis. According to
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Chlamydia is the
most frequently reported infectious disease in the U.S. with
estimates of nearly 3 million cases annually. The Institute of
Medicine estimates that the resulting total annual healthcare cost
exceeds $2 billion. Although antibiotic therapy is available,
Chlamydia is a "silent" disease, showing no symptoms in three
quarters of infected women and half of infected men. If left
untreated in women, 40% of the infections will cause pelvic
inflammatory disease with permanent damage, resulting in chronic
pain, infertility and potentially fatal ectopic pregnancy. Infected
pregnant women may transmit the infection to the eyes and
respiratory tracts of their newborn, resulting in pneumonia and
conjunctivitis. It has been estimated that by age 30, half of all
sexually active women have been infected. Screening is recommended
annually for all sexually active women under 26 years of age, all
pregnant women, as well as older women with certain risk factors.
There is no vaccine currently available to protect against
Chlamydia. The UMA vaccine technology is expected to cover all
chlamydial infections, including those caused by Chlamydia
psittaci, which often results in pneumonia and endocarditis in
humans, and Chlamydia pneumoniae, which is responsible for some
pneumonia, bronchitis, pharyngitis, laryngitis, and sinusitis. In
addition, C. pneumoniae infections have been implicated by some
investigators to be associated with atherosclerotic vascular
disease, Alzheimer's disease, asthma, and reactive arthritis. The
future market for worldwide sales of Chlamydia vaccines has been
estimated by industry analysts to exceed $1 billion annually. About
UMA UMA is a leading national research university, recording more
than $112 million annually in sponsored research activity. The
campus has over 1,100 faculty, 65 departments, and 70 research
centers, with more than 200 technology cases under management.
Michael Jaremchuk, Associate Director of Licensing and Ventures,
noted that the UMA -- BioVeris partnership provides an outstanding
example of the University's capabilities. "We are very adept at
providing solutions and developing technologies applicable to many
industries," he said. UMA is the flagship campus of the University
of Massachusetts system, which was ranked 11th nationally by the
Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) for technology
licensing income of more than $26 million in 2004. Visit
http://www.amherst.cvip-umass.net/ for additional information.
About BioVeris BioVeris Corporation -- America's Biosecurity
Company(TM) -- is an integrated healthcare company developing
proprietary technologies in diagnostics and vaccinology. The
Company is dedicated to the commercialization of innovative
products and services for biosecurity and for healthcare providers,
their patients and their communities. BioVeris is headquartered in
Gaithersburg, Maryland. More information about the Company can be
found at http://www.bioveris.com/. This press release contains
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal
securities laws that relate to future events or BioVeris' future
performance. All statements in this press release that are not
historical facts, including any statements about the agreements
with UMA, market size and growth, and the utility or effectiveness
of Chlamydia vaccines are hereby identified as "forward-looking
statements." The words "may," "should," "will," "expect," "could,"
"anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "plan," "intend" and similar
expressions have been used to identify certain of the
forward-looking statements. In this press release, BioVeris has
based these forward-looking statements on management's current
expectations, estimates and projections and they are subject to a
number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those described in the
forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements should,
therefore, be considered in light of various important factors,
including changes in general economic, business and industry
conditions. The foregoing sets forth some, but not all, of the
factors that could impact upon BioVeris' ability to achieve results
described in any forward-looking statements. A more complete
description of the risks applicable to BioVeris is provided in the
Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
available at the SEC's web site at http://www.sec.gov/. Investors
are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking
statements. Investors also should understand that it is not
possible to predict or identify all risk factors and that neither
this list nor the factors identified in BioVeris' SEC filings
should be considered a complete statement of all potential risks
and uncertainties. BioVeris has no obligation to publicly update or
release any revisions to these forward- looking statements to
reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press
release. DATASOURCE: BioVeris Corporation CONTACT: George Migausky
of BioVeris Corporation, +1-301-869-9800, ext. 2013; Investors:
Jonathan Fassberg of The Trout Group, +1-212-477-9007, ext. 16;
Media: Paul Caminiti or Andrew Cole of Citigate Sard Verbinnen,
+1-212-687-8080, all for BioVeris Corporation Web site:
http://www.bioveris.com/ http://www.amherst.cvip-umass.net/
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