A Medical Device Daily

The European Commission has awarded €8.9 million to establish scientific evidence on how exercise prevents weight gain, obesity and Type 2 diabetes. The grant funds also will go toward starting the process of developing a drug that will mimic the beneficial effects of exercise for people who are unable to exercise themselves.

Led by the University of Dundee (Dundee, Scotland), the EXGENESIS project responds to the urgent problem of obesity, which has increased threefold in the UK over the last 20 years. The increase in obesity is predicted to be followed by a large increase in Type 2 diabetes, which causes many chronic health problems.

The project brings €1 million directly to the University of Dundee.

Professor Grahame Hardie, head of the division of molecular physiology in the School of Life Sciences at the university, who is coordinating the project, said: “The link between exercise and prevention of Type 2 diabetes is very convincing, but is currently only a correlation, rather like the original evidence that smoking causes lung cancer.“

He said that once it is known exactly how exercise prevents the disease, “we will be able to give people more rational advice about exercise and health, and also put more pressure on European governments to adopt policies that make it easier for people to increase their level of exercise.“

Hardie said it may be feasible to develop a drug that mimics the effects of exercise for those people who are unable to undertake it themselves. “This could have great health benefits,“ he said, “but it is some way in the future. It will take several years to develop a drug and test its safety.“

The five-year research project will range from basic studies of the structure of key proteins to studies of supervised exercise programs in large groups of volunteers at risk of developing disease, who will be monitored over the course of the study to assess the outcomes. Ideas generated in the basic science laboratories will be applied to studies in humans.

Besides the University of Dundee, researchers from 26 laboratories across 13 European countries and corporate partners, including AstraZeneca (London) and Unilever (Rotterdam, the Netherlands), will be involved in the project.

Pharming says 'financial turnaround' complete

Pharming Group (Leiden, the Netherlands) said it raised EUR 7 million ($9.1 million) from warrants and options exercised by the company's shareholders and management. The company said it secured total financing of EUR 42 million in 2004 and 2005, saying the transactions “completed its financial turnaround.“

The company, which develops protein therapeutics for genetic disorders, specialty products for surgical indications and intermediates for various applications, also reported completing the acquisition of ProBio International Holdings Pte. Ltd. (Melbourne, Australia) to expand commercial activities with recombinant human lactoferrin.

Pharming granted investors in its February 2004 private placement a one-year option to exercise 3.3 million warrants at a price of EUR 2. The company said that all investors in the placement have exercised the warrants. In addition, the management and advisors of Pharming exercised 500,000 options and warrants in December.

Dr. Francis Pinto, CEO, said, “We are pleased by the decision of existing shareholders and management to increase their holding in the company. With a strong cash position and a low cost base, Pharming is racing toward commercializing the recombinant human C1 inhibitor and recombinant human lactoferrin products.“

The company said the acquisition of ProBio expands its commercial opportunities for recombinant human lactoferrin and enhances Pharming's protein production technology platform.

Pharming has about 78.6 million shares outstanding, including shares issued in the ProBio acquisition and the warrant transaction.

European office backs Angiotech patent

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals (Vancouver, British Columbia) reported a favorable decision on its European patent, No. 0706 376, from the European Patent Office Opposition Division.

The European Patent Office maintained the validity of Angiotech's patent with various claims, including claims to stents coated with paclitaxel and a polymeric carrier. The company said the decision reaffirms its continued patent protection in Europe.

The patent is one of many in the portfolio of patents protecting Angiotech's paclitaxel coating technology for use on medical implants, including the Boston Scientific (Natick, Massachusetts) Taxus stent program.

The company has granted an exclusive license to Boston Sci to supply paclitaxel to coat the Taxus stent, with Angiotech getting royalties on Taxus sales. Paclitaxel-coated stents accounted for $640 million of Boston Scientific's third-quarter coronary stent revenue of $686 million.

Angiotech's focus is on enhancing the performance of medical devices and biomaterials through the use of pharmacotherapeutics.