The new agreement builds on the successful joint research program performed at Rhein Biotech's subsidiary GreenCross Vaccine Corp. In this program, feasibility studies have shown positive and convincing results for an improved vaccine against Japanese Encephalitis developed on Crucell's PER.C6 cell line.
Details of the Agreement
Rhein Biotech has obtained a worldwide license to use Crucell's PER.C6 cell line to develop and commercialize a vaccine against Japanese Encephalitis. Crucell will receive upfront and annual payments, as well as milestone payments and royalties on net product sales. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.
"The results of the program revealed the outstanding quality of the PER.C6 cell line as a manufacturing platform for our leading Japanese Encephalitis vaccine," says Daan Ellens, CEO of Rhein Biotech. "We expect that with the development and production of this 2nd generation vaccine we can significantly increase our market shares both in Asia as well as in industrialized nations."
"We are very pleased to work with Rhein Biotech, which is one of the leading parties in the field of Japanese Encephalitis vaccine and has an established marketing position in Asia," says Dinko Valerio, CEO of Crucell. "The results of the program as well as the new agreement confirm again that the PER.C6 cell line has become an industry standard. It is a safe and scalable system that adequately fulfills the vaccine industry's requirements".
PER.C6(TM) PER.C6(TM) is a human cell platform for the development and manufacturing of bio-pharmaceutical products such as antibodies, proteins and vaccines. The superior yields and scalability of PER.C6, as well as the extensive history and safety documentation render PER.C6 the safe, cost effective and large-volume manufacturing platform that the pharmaceutical industry requires. Having launched the use of PER.C6 as a vaccine platform through an exclusive licensing agreement with Merck & Co. for their HIV vaccine, Crucell aims to expand its PER.C6 business in the field of vaccines. The current agreement with Rhein Biotech endorses this strategy.
Japanese Encephalitis Vaccine
Japanese Encephalitis is the leading cause of viral encephalitis in the greatest part of Asia. The majority of the people living in the endemic areas are infected with the
virus before the age of 15. More than 50.000 children suffer from encephalitis each year of which around 10.000 die. Annual campaigns by GreenCross Vaccine have proven the relevance of vaccination by drastically reducing the incidence of Japanese Encephalitis in Korea.
In 1969, Rhein Biotech's subsidiary GreenCross Vaccine was one of the first companies worldwide to market a vaccine against Japanese Encephalitis. The vaccine is used to protect children living in and people travelling to the endemic areas. Rhein Biotech is currently one of only two companies selling Japanese Encephalitis vaccines to travellers in Europe. The new cell-derived Japanese Encephalitis vaccine developed using the PER.C6 cell line will have advantages over the conventional Japanese Encephalitis vaccine in terms of safety, production costs and production capacity. It is therefore expected that this will lead to a wider range of recommendations for vaccination against Japanese Encephalitis, especially in industrialised countries. Improved production capacities will open up further vaccine supply opportunities also to endemic areas.
Information about the Companies Rhein Biotech is a vaccine oriented global biotechnology group. Rhein Biotech develops, produces and markets prophylactic vaccines and develops new therapeutic vaccines based on its platform technologies. With Hepavax-Gene(R), manufactured by subsidiary GreenCross Vaccine, the group has advanced to the world's third largest producer of hepatitis B vaccine. Rhein Biotech currently markets 13 products reaching 75 percent of the world's population. The group employs over 300 people, with one third in R&D. Rhein Biotech is listed on the Neuer Markt (Frankfurt), where it is included in the Nemax 50 index. For more information on Rhein Biotech, visit www.rheinbiotech.com.
Crucell discovers and develops fully human biopharmaceuticals that utilize the immune system to combat disease. Crucell's proprietary technology platforms, Mabstract(TM), AdVac(TM) and PER.C6(TM) enable the discovery, development and production of novel antigens, Antibodies and Vaccines. Crucell offers its technology to pharmaceutical and biotechnology partners, and utilizes them to create Crucell's own product pipeline. Crucell partners include Merck & Co. for its HIV vaccine and Centocor / Johnson & Johnson for its anti-CD46 antibody for the treatment of various cancers. Crucell has 19 licensees for its PER.C6 technology, including Novartis, Pfizer, GSK, Aventis and Schering. Crucell is listed on NASDAQ and Euronext (CRXL), and based in The Netherlands. For more information visit
www.crucell.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve inherent risks and uncertainties. We have identified certain important factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in such forward-looking statements. See our Form 20-F, as filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on June 29, 2001 and the section of the Form 20-F entitled "Risk Factors".
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