QUÉBEC CITY, March 31, 2015 /CNW
Telbec/ - Aeterna Zentaris Inc. (NASDAQ: AEZS) (TSX: AEZ) (the
"Company") today announced that it has agreed to transfer its
discovery library of roughly 100,000 unique compounds to the South
Carolina Center for Therapeutic Discovery & Development (the
Center) pursuant to a just concluded Material Transfer Agreement.
This Agreement represents the beginning of a long-term relationship
between the Company and the Center, which is part of The
Medical University of South Carolina
(MUSC), that will result in the continued use of the library for
the discovery of drug development candidates for the Company in the
areas of oncology, neurology, endocrinology and women's health. The
Center may make the library available to all investigators in the
University of South Carolina system
without restriction on its use and will own any therapeutic
compounds discovered outside the Company's areas of therapeutic
interest.
The Center has agreed to conduct screening and pre-clinical
activities with respect to the library with a view toward
submitting to the Company at least one development candidate in its
areas of therapeutic interest per year during a ten-year period
beginning in 2018. The Company will receive the right of first
refusal to license the development candidates.
Should the Company decide to further develop a development
candidate submitted by the Center, MUSC will license the compound
candidate to the Company, and be entitled to a royalty on the net
sales of all commercialized products developed from the development
candidate.
However, should the Company decide not to further develop the
development candidate submitted by the Center, MUSC shall pay to
the Company a royalty on net sales of all commercialized products
developed from the development candidate.
David Dodd, Chairman and CEO at
Aeterna Zentaris stated, "This agreement with MUSC is another
concrete step in our strategy of streamlining our internal drug
discovery programs in order to focus our resources on our
late-stage clinical programs, as well as on our commercial
activities. This agreement will therefore make it possible to
continue drug discovery activities without the costs and risks that
they imply. More importantly, it is in line with our overall
strategy of transitioning into a commercially operating specialty
biopharmaceutical company. We look forward to working with the
Center and MUSC, with which we have already established a close
collaboration for our ZoptEC Phase 3 trial in endometrial
cancer."
Karen Lackey, Director of the
MUSC Center for Drug Discovery, added, "The ongoing research at
MUSC is outstanding in basic, translational, and clinical sciences,
focused on understanding disease processes. The transfer of this
high quality collection of drug-like compounds will significantly
increase our opportunities to find new medicines through
sophisticated screening mechanisms. The Center's mission is to
discover and develop effective medicines in diseases that currently
lack viable treatment options."
About Aeterna Zentaris
Aeterna Zentaris is a specialty biopharmaceutical company
engaged in developing and commercializing novel treatments in
oncology, endocrinology and women's health. For more information,
visit www.aezsinc.com.
About The South Carolina Center for Therapeutic Discovery and
Development (the Center)
The South Carolina Center for Therapeutic Discovery and
Development (the Center) at The Medical
University of South Carolina facilitates partnership models
between academic research and pharmaceutical/biotechnology
industries to accelerate the translation of scientific findings
into products that impact health care. The Center represents the
only organization of its type in the state of South Carolina, and thus is well positioned to
provide a complete framework for drug discovery and development for
researchers at MUSC, USC and
Clemson, and for biotechnology-based
companies in the region. For more information, visit
http://academicdepartments.musc.edu/cdd
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements made
pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the US Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve
known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause the
Company's actual results to differ materially from those in the
forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include,
among others, the availability of funds and resources to pursue
R&D projects, the successful and timely completion of clinical
studies, the risk that safety and efficacy data from any of our
Phase 3 trials may not coincide with the data analyses from
previously reported Phase 1 and/or Phase 2 clinical trials, the
ability of the Company to efficiently commercialize one or more of
its products or product candidates, the ability of the Company to
take advantage of business opportunities in the pharmaceutical
industry, uncertainties related to the regulatory process, the
potential of liability arising from shareholder lawsuits, the
specific outcome of our recently announced global resources
optimization program and the financial impact on the Company
resulting therefrom, and general changes in economic conditions.
Investors should consult the Company's quarterly and annual filings
with the Canadian and US securities commissions for additional
information on risks and uncertainties relating to forward-looking
statements. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on
these forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake to
update these forward‑looking statements. We disclaim any obligation
to update any such factors or to publicly announce the result of
any revisions to any of the forward-looking statements contained
herein to reflect future results, events or developments, unless
required to do so by a governmental authority or by applicable
law.
SOURCE Aeterna Zentaris Inc.