Inovio Signs Collaborative Research Agreements With Wistar Institute for DNA-based Immunotherapies and Vaccines
March 16 2016 - 7:00AM
New Agreement Follows Dr. David B.
Weiner’s Move to Wistar from the University of Pennsylvania
(UPenn)
Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:INO) announced today it has
signed collaborative research agreements (CRAs) with the Wistar
Institute for preventive and therapeutic DNA-based immunotherapy
applications and products for cancers and infectious diseases
developed by David B. Weiner, Ph.D., and his Wistar laboratory.
Inovio will have the exclusive right to in-license new intellectual
property developed in this collaboration. Prior to his recent move
to Wistar, the underlying technology for Inovio’s DNA-based
products was first developed at Dr. Weiner’s UPenn laboratory.
Inovio’s license agreements for intellectual property developed at
the University of Pennsylvania will not be affected.
"This new agreement with Wistar starts a whole
new chapter of Inovio’s R&D leadership in one of the most
important emerging medical technologies: DNA-based immunotherapies.
We congratulate Dr. Weiner with respect to his multiple new roles
at Wistar and the significantly expanded lab and resources
available to him to continue pursuing his life’s passion. We look
forward to a long and fruitful relationship with this eminent
institution to continue advancing cutting edge DNA-based
immunotherapies and DNA-based monoclonal antibody technology,” said
Dr. J. Joseph Kim, Inovio's President and CEO.
The Wistar Institute has a storied tradition of
accomplishment, global leadership, training and commercialization
in the field of vaccines and immune therapies. Wistar science has
achieved important health advances through the discoveries of
vaccines against rubella, rotavirus, and rabies. Wistar technology
resulted in the creation of hepatitis A, varicella (chickenpox),
and zoster (shingles) vaccines as well as breakthrough products for
the diagnosis or treatment of autoimmune, heart, and other
infectious diseases.
Dr. Weiner is a pioneer in the field of DNA
immunotherapies and vaccines and a co-founder of VGX
Pharmaceuticals, which became Inovio Pharmaceuticals through a
corporate merger. He serves on Inovio’s Board of Directors and is
Chair of the company’s Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Weiner
recently retired from the University of Pennsylvania after 30
years.
As the Wistar Institute’s Executive Vice
President and Director of its newly established Vaccine Center, Dr.
Weiner will have the mandate and resources to significantly expand
Wistar’s immunology research programs and apply translational
expertise to bridge the gap between research and clinical
application. Furthermore, as the W. W. Smith Endowed Chair in
Cancer Research and professor in Wistar’s Translational Tumor
Immunology program, Dr. Weiner will contribute tumor
immunology-focused research to bolster the ongoing work and mission
of Wistar. The Institute led early research in monoclonal
antibodies against inflammation and cancer. Dr. Weiner will
continue this legacy with his pioneering work in DNA-based
immunotherapies and monoclonal antibodies against infectious
diseases and cancer.
About The Wistar Institute
The Wistar Institute is an international leader
in biomedical research with special expertise in cancer research
and vaccine development. Founded in 1892 as the first independent
nonprofit biomedical research institute in the country, Wistar has
held the prestigious Cancer Center designation from the National
Cancer Institute since 1972. The Institute works actively to ensure
that research advances move from the laboratory to the clinic as
quickly as possible. Wistar’s Business Development team is
dedicated to advancing Wistar Science and Technology Development
through creative partnerships. www.wistar.org.
About Inovio Pharmaceuticals,
Inc.
Inovio is taking immunotherapy to the next level
in the fight against cancer and infectious diseases. We are the
only immunotherapy company that has reported generating T cells in
vivo in high quantity that are fully functional and whose killing
capacity correlates with relevant clinical outcomes with a
favorable safety profile. With an expanding portfolio of immune
therapies, the company is advancing a growing preclinical and
clinical stage product pipeline. Partners and collaborators include
MedImmune, Roche, Wistar Institute, University of Pennsylvania,
DARPA, GeneOne Life Science, Drexel University, NIH, HIV Vaccines
Trial Network, National Cancer Institute, U.S. Military HIV
Research Program, and University of Manitoba. For more information,
visit www.inovio.com.
This press release contains certain forward-looking
statements relating to our business, including our plans to develop
electroporation-based drug and gene delivery technologies and DNA
vaccines, our expectations regarding our research and development
programs and our capital resources. Actual events or results may
differ from the expectations set forth herein as a result of a
number of factors, including uncertainties inherent in pre-clinical
studies, clinical trials and product development programs
(including, but not limited to, the fact that pre-clinical and
clinical results referenced in this release may not be indicative
of results achievable in other trials or for other indications,
that the studies or trials may not be successful or achieve the
results desired, including safety and efficacy for VGX-3100 and
INO-3112, that pre-clinical studies and clinical trials may not
commence or be completed in the time periods anticipated, that
results from one study may not necessarily be reflected or
supported by the results of other similar studies and that results
from an animal study may not be indicative of results achievable in
human studies), the availability of funding to support continuing
research and studies in an effort to prove safety and efficacy of
electroporation technology as a delivery mechanism or develop
viable DNA vaccines, our ability to support our broad pipeline of
SynCon® active immune therapy and vaccine products, our ability to
advance our portfolio of immune-oncology products independently,
the ability of our collaborators to attain development and
commercial milestones for products we license and product sales
that will enable us to receive future payments and royalties, the
adequacy of our capital resources, the availability or potential
availability of alternative therapies or treatments for the
conditions targeted by the company or its collaborators, including
alternatives that may be more efficacious or cost-effective than
any therapy or treatment that the company and its collaborators
hope to develop, our ability to enter into partnerships in
conjunction with our research and development programs, evaluation
of potential opportunities, issues involving product liability,
issues involving patents and whether they or licenses to them will
provide the company with meaningful protection from others using
the covered technologies, whether such proprietary rights are
enforceable or defensible or infringe or allegedly infringe on
rights of others or can withstand claims of invalidity and whether
the company can finance or devote other significant resources that
may be necessary to prosecute, protect or defend them, the level of
corporate expenditures, assessments of the company's technology by
potential corporate or other partners or collaborators, capital
market conditions, the impact of government healthcare proposals
and other factors set forth in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for
the year ended December 31, 2015, and other regulatory filings from
time to time. There can be no assurance that any product in
Inovio's pipeline will be successfully developed or manufactured,
that final results of clinical studies will be supportive of
regulatory approvals required to market licensed products, or that
any of the forward-looking information provided herein will be
proven accurate.
CONTACTS:
Investors: Bernie Hertel, Inovio Pharmaceuticals, 858-410-3101, bhertel@inovio.com
Media: Jeff Richardson, Inovio Pharmaceuticals, 267-440-4211, jrichardson@inovio.com
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