PowderMed Launched in Spin Out of Powder Injection DNA Vaccine Programmes From Chiron Vaccines
Dr Clive Dix, CEO of PowderMed and the former head of PowderJect's R&D, led the spin out. PowderMed's new shareholders include Schroder Ventures Life Sciences, Advent Venture Partners, Abingworth Management Ltd. and Oxford Bioscience Partners, with Chiron Vaccines retaining a minority equity stake. As part of the spin out, PowderMed has acquired all rights to vaccine applications of the PowderJect® technology and the related therapeutic DNA vaccine programmes. The Company will occupy purpose designed development facilities in Oxford UK, which it takes over from Chiron Vaccines.
Initially, PowderMed will focus on applying its PowderJect technology to the development of therapeutic DNA vaccines. Therapeutic vaccines are a new class of product, which harness the immune system in order to produce a therapeutic effect. PowderMed's lead preclinical programmes are all based on its proprietary PowderJect technology and are focused on the treatment of chronic viral diseases and cancer, namely genital herpes, hepatitis B, genital warts, HIV/AIDS and lung cancer.
Launching the Company, Dr Dix said: "PowderMed's technology is clinically validated and provides a unique ability to use the immune system to treat chronic diseases. Using this pioneering technology, we will be developing an exciting pipeline of therapeutic DNA vaccines. PowderMed with it's experienced development team starts its life well placed to become the leading therapeutic DNA vaccine company in the world."
Commenting on behalf of the investors, Tom Daniel, General Partner with Schroder Ventures Life Sciences said: "PowderMed enjoys many attractive qualities from its inception, including a broad pipeline of advanced therapeutic programmes, an experienced management team who've worked together on these programmes for years, and an excellent industrial partner in GSK. We are delighted to be backing the business and to be doing so in the company of a great syndicate of investors.
" Commenting on the agreement, John Lambert, President of Chiron Vaccines, said: "We believe that powder injection has great potential as a novel vaccine delivery technique, Although the technology platform does not fit with Chiron Vaccines' R&D pipeline, we are pleased that its development will continue under the stewardship of PowderMed, with its experienced management team and first class financial backers."
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