Flea u still have you INSM?? we got news and confirmation of $1 per in cash.
Insmed Restructures to Advance Most Promising Drug Candidates and Optimize Resources
RICHMOND, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 23, 2002--
Company to Focus on Development and Commercialization Of
SomatoKine(R) and IND Preparation for New Clinical Candidate, IGFBP-3
Insmed Incorporated (Nasdaq:INSM) announced today that it has
restructured its operations to advance its most promising drug
candidates while at the same time conserving its capital.
This news closely follows its decision to discontinue internal
development of one of its investigational drug candidates, INS-1.
The company's Phase II product candidate, SomatoKine(R), is a
biotherapeutic agent being developed as a growth promoting/anabolic
agent and insulin sensitizer. SomatoKine(R) is currently in clinical
development for growth hormone insensitivity syndrome (GHIS) and
diabetes.
Insmed recently announced the FDA's approval of orphan drug status
for SomatoKine(R) in GHIS and the company plans to initiate a pivotal
clinical trial in this disorder in early 2003. The company plans to
continue its Phase II development program of SomatoKine(R) in type 1
and type 2 diabetes in 2003.
Insmed is concurrently continuing pre-clinical studies and an
Investigational New Drug (IND) preparation for IGFBP-3, a
biotherapeutic that has shown promising anti-tumor efficacy. The
company expects to be prepared to file an IND in the second half of
2003, and will actively seek strategic partnerships to develop the
compound.
In order to ensure more efficient resource utilization Insmed has
reduced its workforce by 55%. The company expects this staff reduction
will give it at least two year's cash reserve. At the end of second
quarter 2002, the company had $36.3 million in cash.
"This restructuring creates an organization that we believe is
best positioned to optimally leverage our resources and at the same
time create shareholder value," said Geoffrey Allan, Ph.D., president
and chief executive officer of Insmed. "We believe the company has the
right mix of resources to fully exploit our promising drug
candidates."
About SomatoKine(R)
The company's product candidate, SomatoKine(R), is being developed
as an insulin sensitizer and growth promoting/anabolic agent. The drug
is the recombinant form of human insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I)
and its regulatory binding protein, IGFBP-3. SomatoKine(R) is
currently in clinical development for type 1 and type 2 diabetes, and
growth hormone insensitivity syndrome (GHIS). Previous studies have
also demonstrated SomatoKine(R) may provide therapeutic benefit to
patients recovering from severe burn trauma and osteoporotic hip
fracture surgery.
About IGFBP-3
The company's product candidate, IGFBP-3, Insulin-like Growth
Factor Binding Protein-3, is a naturally occurring anti-tumor agent.
Preclinical studies have demonstrated that IGFBP-3 enhances "standard
of care therapy" and has shown comparable efficacy as a sole treatment
against cancer in animal models. As a naturally occurring compound,
IGFBP-3 may not elicit the undesirable side effects characteristic of
cancer therapies on the market today.
About Insmed Incorporated
Insmed Incorporated, based in Richmond, VA, is a biopharmaceutical
company focused on the development of drug candidates for the
treatment of metabolic diseases and endocrine disorders. For press
release and other Company information, visit our website at
insmed.com.
Statements included within this press release, which are not
historical in nature, may constitute forward-looking statements for
purposes of the safe harbor provided by the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include all
statements regarding expected financial position, results of
operations, cash flows, dividends, financing plans, business
strategies, operating efficiencies or synergies, budgets, capital and
other expenditures, competitive positions, growth opportunities for
existing or proposed products or services, plans and objectives of
management, demand for new pharmaceutical products, market trends in
the pharmaceutical business, inflation and various economic and
business trends. Such forward-looking statements are subject to
numerous risks and uncertainties, including risks that product
candidates may fail in the clinic or may not be successfully marketed,
the Company may lack financial resources to complete development of
product candidates, competing products may be more successful, demand
for new pharmaceutical products may decrease, the biopharmaceutical
industry may experience negative market trends and other risks
detailed from time to time in the Company's filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. As a result of these and other
risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from
those described in this press release. |
