CHARLESTOWN, Mass., March 12 /PRNewswire/ -- BioTransplant Incorporated (Nasdaq: BTRN - news) today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2000. For the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2000, the Company reported a net loss of $4,271,000 or $0.36 per common share, compared to a net loss of $2,213,000 or $0.26 per common share, for the same period in 1999. Revenues for the fourth quarter of 2000 and 1999 were $110,000 and $2,477,000 respectively. The decrease in revenues was due primarily to an anticipated decrease in research and development support from the Company's collaboration with Novartis Pharma AG, as discussed below.
The Company reported a net loss of $11,679,000 or $1.01 per common share for the year ended December 31, 2000, compared to a net loss of $8,673,000 or $1.01 per common share for the year ended December 31, 1999. Revenues decreased to $4,563,000 for 2000, compared to $8,689,000 for 1999. The decrease in revenues was due primarily to an anticipated decrease in research and development support from the Company's collaboration with Novartis Pharma AG, which came to a conclusion in October 2000, concurrent with the formation of Immerge BioTherapeutics, the Company's joint venture with Novartis in the field of xenotransplantation.
The Company reported cash, cash equivalents and investments of $14,873,000 on December 31, 2000, compared to $21,367,000 on December 31, 1999. The Company anticipates that it has sufficient cash to fund its operating and capital requirements through the middle of 2001. The Company will require substantial additional funds in the near-term to continue operations beyond mid-2001, including, continuing the development and commercialization of its products. Management is actively pursuing various alternatives for raising capital to fund its operations going forward.
``During the year, BioTransplant has moved closer to the goal of becoming the leader in human transplantation therapies for cancer and other serious diseases. The Company has taken many strategic steps culminating in the signing of a definitive merger agreement to acquire Eligix,'' commented Elliot Lebowitz, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of BioTransplant. ``This an exciting time for us. MedImmune is advancing MEDI-507 for psoriasis in the clinic, and we expect that Immerge BioTherapeutics, our JV with Novartis, will further xenotransplantation research efforts for organ transplantation. We are also moving ahead with the AlloMune System for cancer and other serious diseases. With our planned acquisition of Eligix, which we expect to consummate in the first half of this year, we anticipate having a source of near-term European revenues as well as products in Phase III in 2001.''
Highlights of the year 2000 include:
-- Created Immerge BioTherapeutics, a new xenotransplantation-focused
research company, in a joint venture with Novartis AG
-- Signed definitive agreement to acquire Eligix
-- Bred miniature swine that do not transmit Porcine Endogenous Retrovirus
(PERV) to humans
-- Announced with Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) a novel, less toxic
treatment for lymphoma and leukemia
-- Renewed collaboration in transplantation research with MGH
-- Completed a $9.7 million private placement
-- Received U.S. patent covering a novel approach to xenotransplantation
tolerance
-- Received U.S. patent, along with MGH, covering a unique approach to
transplantation and blood cell cancers
BioTransplant Incorporated utilizes its proprietary technologies in re-educating the body's immune responses to allow tolerance of foreign cells, tissues and organs. Based on this technology, the Company is developing a portfolio of products designed to treat a range of medical conditions, including organ and tissue transplantation, cancer and autoimmune disease for which current therapies are inadequate. BioTransplant's products are intended to induce long-term functional transplantation tolerance in humans, increase the therapeutic benefit of bone marrow transplants, and reduce or eliminate the need for life-long immunosuppressive therapy.... |
