For immediate release |
23 November 2015 |
Evgen Pharma plc
("Evgen Pharma" or "the Company")
Expands Pipeline with Novel Compounds
Evgen Pharma plc (AIM: EVG), a clinical stage drug development company focused on the treatment of cancer and neurological conditions, has acquired exclusive worldwide licensing rights to a wide range of novel compounds from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the University of Seville, Spain.
This in-licensing agreement further bolsters the intellectual property position of the Company with rights to more than 60 new chemical entities based on the core structure of sulforaphane, the active ingredient in the Company's lead product SFX-01. Evgen Pharma will use its Sulforadex® platform to synthesise and stabilise the newly acquired compounds with a view to taking the most promising into clinical development.
Under the terms of the worldwide licensing agreement, Evgen Pharma will pay a modest upfront payment and one-off milestone payments as the first compound progresses through clinical development. Royalties on future sales of any marketed products will not exceed 1% of net sales.
Patent protection for the newly in-licensed compounds is pending in Europe, United States, China, Japan, Australia, Canada and is granted in their national home territory of Spain.
The new compounds will complement Evgen Pharma's SFX-01, a synthetic and stabilised version of sulforaphane, a naturally occurring molecule with established anti-cancer and neuroprotectant properties. Early next year, SFX-01 is expected to enter Phase II trials in subarachnoid haemorrhage and, a few months later, in metastatic breast cancer.
Dr Stephen Franklin, Evgen Pharma's CEO, commented: "We are delighted to acquire the exclusive worldwide licensing rights to these novel compounds. The University of Seville has conducted an innovative medicinal chemistry programme based on sulforaphane and, like sulforaphane, these novel compounds have a requirement for our patented stabilisation technology. These new compounds give us the opportunity to lead the intellectual property space around sulforaphane and to build a drug development pipeline targeting several therapeutic markets within neurology and oncology."
Enquiries:
Evgen Pharma plc Dr Stephen Franklin, CEO www.evgen.com |
c/o +44 (0) 20 7466 5000 |
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Buchanan Mark Court, Sophie Cowles, Stephanie Watson |
+44 (0) 20 7466 5000 |
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Northland Capital Partners Limited Matthew Johnson, Gerry Beaney, Margarita Mitropoulou (Corporate Finance) John Howes, Mark Treharne (Corporate Broking) |
+44 (0) 20 7382 1100 |
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Notes for editors:
About Evgen Pharma plc
Evgen Pharma is a clinical stage drug development company whose lead programmes are in breast cancer and subarachnoid haemorrhage, a type of stroke. It is also carrying out preclinical work in multiple sclerosis and has a clinical interest in prostate cancer. The Company's core technology is Sulforadex®, a method for synthesising and stabilising the naturally occurring compound sulforaphane and novel proprietary analogues based on sulforaphane. The lead product, SFX-01, is a patented composition of synthetic sulforaphane and alpha-cyclodextrin.
Evgen Pharma commenced operations in January 2008 and is based in Liverpool, UK, at the Liverpool Science Park. It joined the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in October 2015 and trades under the ticker symbol EVG. For further information please visit www.evgen.com
