Lonza announced today an exclusive contract for the production of Immune Pharmaceutical's human immunoglobulin monoclonal antibody, Bertilimumab, under investigation for the treatment of several inflammatory disorders. Under the agreement, Lonza will produce phase 2 clinical trial material at its mammalian development and manufacturing facility.

"We are excited about this opportunity to support Immune Pharmaceutical's growing pipeline", said Dr. Stephan Kutzer, COO Lonza Custom Manufacturing. "This partnership is a direct reflection of our commitment to emerging pharmaceutical companies as they advance through clinical phase milestones."

Bertilimumab has great potential for the treatment of eosinophilic inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) -Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis- and eosinophilic gastro-intestinal diseases (EGID). Bertilimumab is the first monoclonal antibody to specifically neutralize human eotaxin-1, a chemokine associated with inflammatory disease activity.

Dr. Daniel Teper, CEO of IMMUNE said, "Lonza understands the needs of emerging companies, providing assistance and flexibility, while maintaining the highest standards essential for regulatory compliance and successful partnering." IMMUNE strengthened its internal bio-manufacturing expertise by appointing to its Board of Directors, Dr David Naveh, formerly the Chief Technical Officer of Bayer Biologics Worldwide.
About Bertilimumab

Bertilimumab (also known as iCo-008 or CAT-213) is a human immunoglobulin monoclonal antibody targeting eotaxin-1, a member of the chemokine family of proteins that act as messenger molecules between the cells of the immune system. Bertilimumab has been in 126 patients in Phase 1 and 2 studies, has a good safety profile and has shown evidence of efficacy in a severe allergy indication. Bertilimumab may be indicated for inflammatory disorders including Severe Asthma, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis) as well as ophthalmic indications (wet age related macular degeneration, vernal and atopic keratoconjunctivitis).

IMMUNE licensed worldwide rights for systemic indications from iCo Therapeutics in June 2011, while iCo is retaining the ophthalmic indications.

iCo (TSX-V:ICO) originally licensed the exclusive world-wide rights to Bertilimumab in 2006 from MedImmune Limited (formerly known as Cambridge Antibody Technology Limited), the Global Biologics Unit of AstraZeneca.

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