ImmunGene, Cephalon Australia collaborate to advance new class of protein therapeutics

ImmunGene, Inc., a privately held drug development company focused on targeted antibody therapeutics, announced today it has entered into a collaboration in which Cephalon Australia (a wholly owned subsidiary of Cephalon, Inc.) will apply ImmunGene's interferon payload technology to up to six of its new drug targets for cancers.

Under terms of the collaboration, Cephalon Australia will pay undisclosed fees including an up-front payment to ImmunGene for a four-year option to leverage ImmunGene's novel drug development technology in preclinical research on up to six of Cephalon Australia's drug candidates. Cephalon has the option to pay ImmunGene license fees for exclusivity on each of these candidates that it decides to move into clinical trials.

Cephalon Australia is responsible for research, clinical development, manufacturing and commercialization of products that result from the ImmunGene collaboration.  ImmunGene is eligible to receive considerable payments for research, clinical and regulatory milestones for each drug candidate in the collaboration that is commercialized, in addition to royalties on worldwide net sales of any resulting products.

Dr. Sanjay Khare, CEO of ImmunGene, said, "This collaboration is a validation of ImmunGene's novel antibody function enhancement technology that adds the power of cytokines to antibodies while reducing the systemic toxicity of the cytokines."  Dr. Raj Sachdev, ImmunGene's Chief Operating Officer, added, "We are pleased to have Cephalon Australia as a partner with its strong commitment to advancing this new class of protein therapeutics."

ImmunGene is leveraging promising science to tap the power of the immune system to develop therapeutic antibodies with increased efficacy and superior safety compared to existing therapies.

ImmunGene's breakthrough technology platform, available for non-exclusive licensing, offers pharma and biotech companies the possibility of utilizing its technology platform to fuse cytokines to antibodies that selectively target diseased cells and tissues while reducing the systemic toxicity of the cytokines. Using as little as 1/100 of the usual cancer therapeutic dose, products employing ImmunGene's technology promise safety with the power to kill tumor cells, limit blood supply and turn off genes that support tumor growth. Thus, ImmunGene offers the possibility of utilizing lower doses of their drug candidates for clinical efficacy, simplifying the manufacturing process, and lowering cost of goods.