Merck and FoxHollow Technologies Expand Scope of Worldwide Strategic Research Collaboration
September 27 2006 - 10:00AM
PR Newswire (US)
Merck Commits More Than $100M in Funding and Acquires Stake in
FoxHollow REDWOOD CITY, Calif., and WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J., Sept.
27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- FoxHollow Technologies, Inc. and Merck
& Co., Inc., today announced that they will expand the scope of
their existing strategic collaboration for atherosclerotic plaque
analysis and that Merck will acquire a stake in FoxHollow with the
purchase of $95 million in common stock, subject to customary
closing conditions and clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino
Anti-Trust Improvements Act. Under the terms of the expanded
collaboration agreement, Merck will pay $40 million to FoxHollow
over four years in exchange for FoxHollow's agreement to
collaborate exclusively with Merck in specified disease areas. If
Merck extends the collaboration program beyond this period, to
continue the exclusive collaboration arrangement, Merck would pay
$10 million per year, which may be offset by potential royalty and
milestone obligations. Merck will also provide a minimum of $60
million in funding to FoxHollow over the first three years of the
four year collaboration program term, for research activities to be
conducted by Fox Hollow under Merck's direction, including removal
of atherosclerotic plaque from patient arteries for analysis,
conduct of clinical trials and drug profiling by Merck. FoxHollow
will receive milestone payments on successful development of drug
products or diagnostic tests utilizing results from the
collaboration, as well as royalties. In addition, Merck will
acquire newly-issued shares of FoxHollow common stock at $29.629
per share, representing approximately an eleven percent stake in
the company. FoxHollow will appoint a Merck representative to the
FoxHollow Board of Directors, increasing the size of the board to
six members, and receive certain protective provisions. Novel
Collaboration Enlarged It was in September 2005 that FoxHollow and
Merck announced the first pharmaceutical-medical device partnership
aimed at identifying cardiovascular biomarkers for use as
diagnostics and as tools for drug development. The expanded
collaboration remains focused on the analysis of atherosclerotic
plaque collected from patients treated with FoxHollow's
SilverHawk(TM) Plaque Excision System. The scope and magnitude of
these studies have substantially increased and other disease areas
have now been added. Merck is using these analyses of human
atherosclerotic plaque as a means of identifying novel targets to
treat atherosclerosis and biomarkers to develop therapies that are
in Merck's pipeline or have been licensed from other partners. "For
the first time in any pharmaceutical company's history, we have the
ability to capture and evaluate atherosclerotic plaque from
thousands of patients," said Peter S. Kim, Ph.D., president of
Merck Research Laboratories. "Our first year of collaboration with
FoxHollow has given us novel insights into cardiovascular disease,
and we're very pleased to enlarge our relationship today to
continue this focus on cardiovascular disease while including other
important disease areas as well." The expanded collaboration will
also enable FoxHollow to use human plaque analysis to enhance the
capabilities of its NightHawk(TM) intravascular plaque imaging
system, and accelerate its anti-restenosis drug therapy program.
"Removing and analyzing plaque from patients unlocks a tremendous
amount of valuable information that informs research moving
forward," said John Simpson, Ph.D., M.D., CEO of FoxHollow.
"Merck's expertise in cardiovascular medicine makes it uniquely
suited to partner with FoxHollow in this work. We are proud to be
working together and welcome Merck's input on our Board of
Directors." "We hope our collaboration will lead to the development
of novel, individualized cardiovascular therapies," noted Richard
C. Pasternak, M.D., vice president of Cardiovascular Research,
Merck Research Laboratories, who has worked closely with FoxHollow
in the past year. "We look forward to the expansion of what has
been a most productive partnership with FoxHollow." His words were
echoed by Duke Rohlen, FoxHollow's president of Strategic
Operations. "We are passionately committed to improving patient
care through the development of innovative and effective
treatments," Rohlen added. "An essential part of that commitment is
partnering our device expertise with Merck, an innovative leader in
cardiovascular pharmaceutical research and development." About
FoxHollow Technologies, Inc. FoxHollow Technologies, Inc. develops
and markets minimally invasive plaque excision devices for the
treatment of peripheral artery disease (PAD). An estimated 12
million people in the U.S. are thought to suffer from PAD, with 2.5
million patients currently diagnosed. PAD results from plaque that
accumulates in the arteries and blocks blood flow in the legs.
These blockages can result in severe pain, very limited physical
mobility, and limb loss. The company's SilverHawk system is a
minimally invasive method of removing the obstructive plaque and
restoring blood flow to the legs and feet. For more information,
please visit our website at http://www.foxhollowtech.com/.
FoxHollow Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements in this press
release regarding FoxHollow's business that are not historical
facts may be "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and
uncertainties. Specifically, statements concerning expansion of the
plaque analysis collaboration and expectations regarding payments
thereunder and the effect of the collaboration on the development
of the NightHawk and FoxHollow's anti-restensosis drug therapy
program are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements
are based on management's current, preliminary expectations and are
subject to risks and uncertainties, which may cause FoxHollow's
actual results to differ materially from the statements contained
herein. These potential risks and uncertainties include the risk
that the investment by Merck and the collaboration activities under
the Merck agreement cannot occur due to either a failure to obtain
antitrust clearance under the Hart Scott Rodino act or material
adverse changes in FoxHollow's business that result in its
inability to fulfill certain closing conditions under the
agreements or that future payments may not be realized due to
FoxHollow's inability to achieve certain milestones under the
collaboration agreement. Other risks and uncertainties are included
under the captions, "Managements' Discussion and Analysis of
Financial Condition and Results of Operations," and "Risk Factors,"
in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q as filed with the Securities
and Exchange Commission on August 9, 2006, which is on file with
the SEC and available on our investor relations website at
http://investor.foxhollowtech.com/ and on the SEC's website at
http://www.sec.gov/. Undue reliance should not be placed on
forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they
are made. FoxHollow undertakes no obligation to update publicly any
forward-looking statements to reflect new information, events or
circumstances after the date they were made, or to reflect the
occurrence of unanticipated events. About Merck Merck & Co.,
Inc. is a global research-driven pharmaceutical company dedicated
to putting patients first. Established in 1891, Merck currently
discovers, develops, manufactures and markets vaccines and
medicines to address unmet medical needs. The Company devotes
extensive efforts to increase access to medicines through
far-reaching programs that not only donate Merck medicines but help
deliver them to the people who need them. Merck also publishes
unbiased health information as a not-for-profit service. For more
information, visit http://www.merck.com/. Merck Forward-Looking
Statement This press release contains "forward-looking statements"
as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's current
expectations and involve risks and uncertainties, which may cause
results to differ materially from those set forth in the
statements. The forward-looking statements may include statements
regarding product development, product potential or financial
performance. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed, and
actual results may differ materially from those projected. Merck
undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking
statement, whether as a result of new information, future events,
or otherwise. Forward-looking statements in this press release
should be evaluated together with the many uncertainties that
affect Merck's business, particularly those mentioned in the
cautionary statements in Item 1 of Merck's Form 10-K for the year
ended Dec. 31, 2005, and in its periodic reports on Form 10-Q and
Form 8-K, which the Company incorporates by reference. Media
Contacts: Merck: Christopher Loder Dir., Media Relations (908)
423-3786 FoxHollow: Robin Gaffney Dir., Global Brand Strategy &
Comm. (650) 421-8614 Investor Contacts: Merck: Graeme Bell Sr.
Dir., Investor Relations (908) 423-5185 FoxHollow: Matt Ferguson
Chief Financial Officer (650) 421-8449 DATASOURCE: FoxHollow
Technologies, Inc. CONTACT: Media: Christopher Loder, Dir., Media
Relations, of Merck, +1-908-423-3786 or , or Robin Gaffney, Dir.,
Global Brand Strategy & Comm., of FoxHollow, +1-650-421-8614 or
; or Investors: Graeme Bell, Sr. Dir., Investor Relations of Merck,
+1-908-423-5185 or , or Matt Ferguson, Chief Financial Officer of
FoxHollow, +1-650-421-8449 or Web site:
http://www.foxhollowtech.com/
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