To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: Collaboration Agreement Signed to Evaluate the Potential of Maspin URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/ED9E.htm Doctor's Guide December 11, 1996
RICHMOND, Calif., Dec. 11, 1996 -- LXR Biotechnology Inc. (AMEX: LXR) today announced it has signed an agreement with Boehringer Mannheim Group, to jointly evaluate the potential of Maspin, a naturally occurring protein, as a pharmaceutical in the treatment of breast cancer and prostate cancer. LXR is the exclusive licensee of the patented technology covering Maspin, a protein that is believed to suppress tumors in breast tissue. The protein was discovered by a group of scientists headed by Dr. Ruth Sager of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, a Harvard affiliate. In collaboration with scientists from LXR, the Dana-Farber scientists reported that Maspin levels in highly metastic breast tumors are greatly reduced. The agreement calls for the companies to make a joint assessment of the role of Maspin in the development of tumors and their metastasis. LXR will conduct toxicity studies with human Maspin and will also conduct tumor inhibition studies with human Maspin in the nude mouse model. In the event the joint assessment is successful, the agreement calls for research funding and milestone payments along with a royalty fee to LXR upon commercialization. The details of the agreement have not been disclosed. "The National Cancer Institute has acknowledged the critical role that Maspin research may play in the continuing search for a cancer cure, through its funding of Maspin-related studies in its 1996 Bypass Budget," said Dr. Donald Picker, president and chief operating officer of LXR, who has been responsible for the development of major cancer therapeutics both in development and on the market. "We believe that the research we conduct under this joint agreement with Boehringer Mannheim Group will help to further the understanding of how cancer tumors grow and spread, and specifically, whether or not Maspin can suppress the development of primary tumors and/or inhibit its subsequent metastasis," he said. "Biotechnology and molecular medicine are core competencies of Boehringer Mannheim. We identified Maspin as a potential opportunity for our exciting project and product portfolio," said Dr. Klaus Strein, chief technology officer of the Boehringer Mannheim Group. LXR also announced it has received a Phase I grant from the Small Business Innovation Research Program to evaluate Maspin's role as a tumor suppressor for various other cancers. The work under the SBIR grant began Dec. 1, 1996. LXR Biotechnology Inc., based in Richmond, Calif., is a biopharmaceutical company that is best known for developing novel therapeutic agents to treat diseases by controlling the process of programmed cell death known as apoptosis. The company, which employs 50 people, was founded in 1992, and completed its successful initial public offering on the American Stock Exchange in 1994. The Boehringer Mannheim Group is a diversified, international, high-technology healthcare company with net sales of more than $3 billion in 1995 and nearly 18,000 employees worldwide. The company is a world leader in offering products and services relating to lab diagnostics, patient care, therapeutics and biochemicals, as well as patient-focused health education and training programs. The Boehringer Mannheim Group was founded in 1859 in Germany, has its corporate headquarters in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and operates in all major countries. The company is part of Corange Limited, a privately held company that recorded sales of almost $4 billion in 1995 with its two brands, Boehringer Mannheim Group and the DePuy Group. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.