Medgenics signs development agreement with international pharma company

Medgenics of Israel has moved a step closer to commercialisation of its tissue protein technology after signing a preclinical development and option agreement with an international biopharmaceutical company that is a market leader in the field of haemophilia.

The agreement is worth up to US$7m in payments that will include funding for preclinical development of Medgenics" Biopump protein technology to produce and deliver clotting protein Factor VIII for the sustained treatment of haemophilia.

Medgenics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, will receive US$4m to work exclusively for one year with the unnamed partner to develop a Biopump to test the feasibility of continuous production and delivery of a clotting protein for use in the treatment of haemophilia.

Additional payments totalling US$3m are payable upon Medgenics meeting certain technical milestones and upon the partner deciding to extend the exclusivity through an additional period to negotiate terms to commercialise the Biopump technology for Factor VIII.

The Biopump tissue protein therapeutic platform has already had success in the production of erythropoietin in treating renal anaemia and interferon alpha for use in treating hepatitis C.

The market for Factor VIII is said to be greater than US$3.2bn a year. According to the World Federation of Haemophilia, some 400,000 people in the world have haemophilia.

"The fact that this agreement is for a new therapeutic application of our Biopump demonstrates the versatility of our platform technology," said Dr Andrew Pearlman, ceo of Medgenics.

"While this first agreement is directed to the treatment of haemophilia, Medgenics is continuing its discussions with other potential partners with a view to signing additional agreements for other indications using different therapeutic proteins."