Genmab acquires license for cancer target from Ganymed.
Copenhagen, Denmark; April 26, 2004 – Genmab A/S (CSE: GEN) and privately held Ganymed Pharmaceuticals AG located in Germany, announced today that Genmab will license Ganymed’s GT43 cancer target. The target is expressed on a wide range of tumors, including melanoma, breast cancer, lung cancer, and hepatocellular carcinoma.
About the target
The GT43 target is expressed on the cell membrane of cancer cells but not on normal tissues of any essential organ and has demonstrated a role in cell signaling. In particular, it is upstream in a signaling pathway involved in cell survival. Laboratory studies have shown that the inhibition of the target resulted in a markedly decreased cell migration. It was also demonstrated that expression of GT43 is strongly correlated with metastasis in patients with breast cancer and non-small cell lung cancer.
Under the terms of the agreement, Ganymed will be entitled to license fees, milestones and royalties on the sale of successfully commercialized products.
“Ganymed’s skill in identifying and validating disease targets has led to the discovery of GT43, a target expressed in a wide variety of cancer cells,” said Lisa N. Drakeman, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Genmab. “We are pleased to expand our product portfolio to include this target.”
“Genmab is well known for its excellence in developing antibody based therapies,” said Rainer Wessel, Ph.D., President & Chief Executive Officer of Ganymed. “We are very pleased that we have a first class partner for our GT43 target.”
The announcement today is not expected to have an effect on Genmab’s previously published financial guidance.
About Ganymed Pharmaceuticals AG
Ganymed Pharmaceuticals AG creates products based on highly selective disease-specific antigens as targets for therapeutics and diagnostics. Ganymed’s vision is to enable a new era in the treatment of cancer and other life threatening diseases with unsatisfied medical need by developing well-tolerated potent pharmaceuticals that exclusively target diseased cells thus sparing healthy tissues. Using its Virtual cloning, MembranomicsTM, cancer splice variant screen and MicroGATETM technologies, Ganymed is establishing a broad patent portfolio for target structures selectively expressed in frequent cancers including cancer of lung, breast, colon, pancreas, stomach, ovary and prostate. Ganymed’s dual business strategy generates early income by outlicensing identified antigens and creates value by developing strategic alliances with leading biotech or pharmaceutical companies. This strategy is expected to provide both the chance to become a fully integrated pharmaceutical company as well as the flexibility for a permanent alliance with leading world-wide pharmaceutical partners. |
