Velcera Pharmaceuticals Gains Exclusive License for Proprietary
Lingual Spray Technology from NovaDel
New Veterinary Company Will Commercialize Novel Drug Delivery Technology for
Pets, Other Animals
LANGHORNE, Pa., Sept. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Velcera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today it has entered into an agreement providing exclusive worldwide
rights to patented lingual spray drug delivery technology from NovaDel Pharma,
Inc. (AMEX:NVD) of Flemington, NJ for development of innovative veterinary
medicines.
Velcera is a development-stage, privately-held animal health company headed by
former senior executives at the animal units of Merial, Merck, and
Schering-Plough.
"In our years of experience and technology assessment, we have yet to see a
drug delivery platform as robust and versatile as NovaDel's lingual spray
technology," commented Velcera's Chief Executive Officer Dennis Steadman, the
former vice president of North American Operations for Merial Ltd.
"Particularly in the pet market, which is our initial focus," he continued,
"there is a definite unsatisfied need to ease the physical and emotional
discomfort of drug administration by pet owners and to help improve compliance
for better therapeutic outcomes. We have an excellent team at Velcera and
strong financial backing. Now, with our NovaDel partnership we have a strong
proprietary position to offer better versions of high value off-patent animal
pharmaceuticals as well as look at some newer molecules." A trial conducted at an independent facility sponsored by Velcera showed that
NovaDel's delivery technology was well accepted by cats and dogs and that it
could represent a significant leap forward in simplifying pet-owner
administration of medicines.
NovaDel's technology is expected to overcome the well-known problem of poor
compliance when it comes to administration of pills by pet owners. Cats and
dogs are often uncooperative in taking a pill. Some pets appear to take the
pill, only to then spit it out later when out of sight of the owner. Still
others will intentionally avoid ingesting medication mixed with their food.
With NovaDel's technology, pet owners would more easily administer drugs by
dispensing a fine mist of the product onto the gum and/or inner cheek areas.
Rapid absorption though the oral mucosa takes the drug into the bloodstream.
In human health, this direct delivery into the bloodstream generally means
lower doses are sufficient for the same therapeutic effect achieved with higher
doses in a pill form of the same drug. The technology offers the additional
advantage of largely avoiding first pass liver metabolism. NovaDel's first
human drug was submitted for approval to the US FDA earlier this year.
As part of the agreement, NovaDel received an equity stake in the Velcera along
with an upfront cash technology fee. The agreement provides NovaDel with
milestone payments for each product developed by Velcera and royalties on
product sales.
Products will be formulated in NovaDel labs at Velcera expense and Velcera will
fund all development and regulatory activities. The resulting Velcera products
will be manufactured by NovaDel.
"This is a way for NovaDel to expand its lingual spray technology into another
market by capitalizing on Velcera's resources and expertise in this area," said
Gary A Shangold, MD, NovaDel's chief executive officer. The animal health
market is $14 billion globally and growing and our technology offers what
appear to be very special advantages in drug administration and compliance. We
are fortunate to have a partnership with a company of very seasoned executives
whose focus is on improving animal health by way of NovaDel's patented delivery
system." NovaDel Pharma Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical company engaged in the
development of novel drug delivery systems for prescription and over-the-
counter drugs. The Company's proprietary lingual spray technology delivery
system offers the patient the potential for (i) fast onset of action; (ii)
improved drug safety by reducing the required drug dosage and reducing side
effects; (iii) improved patient convenience and compliance; and (iv) enhanced
dosage reliability. The Company plans to develop such products independently
and through collaborative arrangements with major pharmaceutical and biotech
companies.
Velcera Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a privately-held, development-stage animal
health company dedicated to breaking-through the administration barriers in
veterinary medicine to bring new convenience, improved compliance and
therapeutic benefits to animal patients. Velcera combines patented drug
delivery technology with in-depth animal health expertise and solid financial
backing to develop and market new and unique animal health medicines. The
Velcera name is constructed from Vela (Latin root: to pass through) and Cere
(Latin suffix, breaking through) reflecting the company's dedication to
breaking-through to improve veterinary medicine. Velcera is headquartered in
Bucks County, Pennsylvania USA.
For more information, please contact:
Dennis Steadman
201 Corporate Dr., Langhorne, PA 19047-8007
Phone: 215-579-7200 / Fax: 215-579-8335
http://www.velcera.com/ DATASOURCE: Velcera Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
CONTACT: Dennis Steadman of Velcera Pharmaceuticals, Inc., +1-215-579-7200, fax, +1-215-579-8335, Web site: http://www.velcera.com/
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