Signed Heads of Agreement

RNS Number:8090E
Henderson Morley PLC
09 December 2002


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                           9 DECEMBER 2002


                              HENDERSON MORLEY PLC

    HENDERSON MORLEY AGREES TERMS TO OUT-LICENCE ICVT FOR OCULAR APPLICATION


The Board of Henderson Morley plc ("Henderson Morley" or "the Company") is
pleased to announce that it has signed Heads of Agreement with Croma Pharma GmbH
("Croma") to grant a patent licence in respect of its platform technology ICVT
(Ionic Contra Viral Therapy).

The licence is expected to be granted by 31 January 2003 and Croma will commence
Phase 2 clinical trials as soon as practicable after that date.

The licence will be an exclusive licence in a number of the agreed territories,
which includes Europe, Mexico, Central America and South America, and will allow
Croma to develop pharmaceutical products for ocular applications only.  In
addition, Croma will assist the Company in procuring licences for ICVT in
Countries not covered under this agreement.

Under the terms of the licence, Croma will conduct clinical trials in respect of
the ocular application of ICVT and seek regulatory approvals throughout the
territories for the use of ICVT in pharmaceutical products and to manufacture,
market, distribute and sell products in the agreed territories.

Croma will pay the Company royalties calculated as a percentage of the gross
sales and will make an undisclosed up-front payment upon signing of the licence.
All clinical trial costs relating to the development of ICVT will be borne by
Croma.


The market for the ocular application of ICVT

The most common viral pathogens of the eye is Adenovirus against which ICVT has
already demonstrated efficacy


Adenovirus Keratoconjunctivitis

Statistics for this infection are not generally collated however it is accepted
as being the most common viral cause for conjunctivitis or 'red eye'.  It is
known however that acute conjunctivitis has an episode rate of 13.5/1000
population per year (Sheldrick JH BMJ 1992), and that as many as 75% of cases of
infectious conjunctivitis are caused by adenovirus (Woodland RM et al 1992).

This equates to approximately 1% of the population per year infected with
adenovirus or 10 million cases in the target market area.

There is no anti-viral treatment available for adenovirus infections, nor any
other under clinical development.

ICVT has also demonstrated efficacy against other viruses, which cause ocular
infections including herpes simplex and varicella zoster.


About Croma

Pharmacists G and K Prinz founded Croma in 1976 for the purpose of importing
emergency drugs.  In 1986 it began distributing pharmaceuticals for eye diseases
and ophthalmological diagnostic instruments, and over the last decade Croma has
established a wide range of products and services that has cemented its position
as one of the leading European companies in the field of ophthalmics.

Croma has also established a large-scale GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice)
accredited manufacturing facility for ophthalmic products, which were
distributed throughout the territories.

With its distribution of Intra Ocular Lenses, Viscoelastics, ophthalmic lasers
and surgical instruments, Croma has established itself as a respected specialist
in the area of Cataract Surgery.  In recent years Croma has, in collaboration
with the Institute of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biopharmaceutics at the
University of Vienna, developed various novel  biopolymer derivatives for use in
the eye.

Commenting, Henderson Morley Chairman, Andrew Knight said:  "We are delighted to
have reached agreement with Croma.  We have been very impressed with Croma's
facilities and its manufacturing and distribution infrastructure.   We will
continue to seek potential partners for the other applications of ICVT and the
vaccine technologies in our portfolio."

Martin Prinz, Vice President of Croma Pharma GmbH commented:  "We have been
looking for a treatment for adenovirus and other related ocular diseases for
some considerable time and we believe that the ICVT treatment will complement
our existing ocular portfolio."


                                      ENDS



Copies of this announcement will be available free of charge to the public at
the Company's registered office at Metropolitan House, 2 Salisbury Road,
Moseley, Birmingham, B13 8JS and at the offices of Brewin Dolphin Securities
Ltd, 34 Lisbon Street, Leeds LS1 4LX for 14 days.


HENDERSON MORLEY PLC                                     Tel: 0121 442 4600
Andrew Knight, Chairman

BREWIN DOLPHIN SECURITIES LTD                            Tel: 0113 241 0126
Neil Baldwin

BARNES AND WALTERS LTD                                   Tel: 020 7430 1600
Maxine Barnes                                            Mobile 07860 489571




Enquiries:

Notes to Editors:

Clinical Trials

Before any new drug or combination of drugs come to market they have to pass a
rigorous testing procedure to the satisfaction of the regulatory authorities in
each territory in which they are to be licenced.  This process is normally
divided into two main stages:

Pre-clinical Studies

These are studies, which are conducted in the laboratory before humans are
brought into contact with the drug.

Clinical Studies

The clinical investigation of a previously untested drug is generally divided
into three sequential phases:

Phase 1: includes the initial introduction of an investigational new drug into
humans.  Phase 1 studies are typically closely monitored and may be conducted in
patieints or normal volunteer subjects.

As the component drugs of ICVT have been used for treatment in other indications
for many years, the clinical studies are likely to be shorter than for a new
chemical entity.  These clinical trials will therefore commence at Phase 2.

Phase 2: includes the controlled clinical studies conducted to evaluate the
effectiveness of the drug for a particular indication or indications in patients
with the disease or condition under study.  Phase 2 studies are typically well
controlled, closely monitored and conducted in a relatively small number of
patients.

Phase 3: studies are expanded controlled and uncontrolled trials.  They are
intended to gather additional information about effectiveness and safety that is
needed to evaluate the overall benefit-risk relationship of the drug.  Phase 3
studies usually include a much larger number of subjects.

Following the successful outcome of Phase 3 studies, approval for a marketing
licence may be sought from the licensing authorities.  The approximate timescale
from Phase 2 to market is considered to be in the region of 2 1/2 to 3 1/2
years.


                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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