Health & Fitness
Health and Fitness
Health and Fitness
Tue, January 5, 2010
Mon, January 4, 2010 Advaxis Awarded European Patent for New Listeria Vector
NORTH BRUNSWICK, N.J.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--[ Advaxis, Inc ]., (OTCBB: ADXS), the live, attenuated Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) immunotherapy company, has received notification from the European Patent Office (EPO) that Advaxis patent application 98957980.0 titled "Bacterial Vaccines Comprising Auxotrophic, Attenuated Strains of Listeria Expressing Heterologous Antigens," has been granted and will be issued as patent #1032417. This application complements the already obtained US and Japan approvals for this technology and extends Advaxis' intellectual property protection.
"Bacterial Vaccines Comprising Auxotrophic, Attenuated Strains of Listeria Expressing Heterologous Antigens"
This novel form of bioengineered Lm was designed to be an improved vaccine strain of the bacterium with a lower level of virulence and a higher level of immunogenicity; resulting in a potentially safer and more effective therapeutic agent. Both the breast cancer and prostate cancer vaccines planned for clinical development use the new Lm strain.
Advaxis' intellectual property portfolio contains compositions of matter, uses and methods that go to the manufacture and use of live, attenuated Lm vaccines that secrete antigen-adjuvant fusion proteins; and, for the manufacture and use of the fusion proteins independent of Lm. Currently, Advaxis has patents, either issued or in process, for three (3) different bioengineered strains of Lm with different properties for use as human vaccines, as well as patents covering two (2) separate families of adjuvant fusions based on the molecules LLO (listeriolysin O) and ActA.
About the European Patent Office
The EPO provides a uniform application procedure for individual inventors and companies seeking patent protection in up to thirty-eight (38) European countries. It is the executive arm of the EPO and is supervised by the Administrative Council.
About Advaxis, Incorporated
Based in North Brunswick, New Jersey, Advaxis is developing proprietary Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) cancer vaccines based on technology developed by Dr. Yvonne Paterson, professor of microbiology at the University of Pennsylvania and chairperson of Advaxis' scientific advisory board. Advaxis is developing attenuated live Lm vaccines that deliver engineered tumor antigens, which stimulate multiple simultaneous immunological mechanisms to fight cancer.
In a recent Advaxis Phase I clinical trial, a live Lm vaccine directed against the tumor-associated antigen HPV-16-E7 was safely administered to fifteen (15) women with advanced metastatic cancer of the cervix. Although this first trial of an Lm vaccine in humans was not designed or powered to prove efficacy, Advaxis believes an efficacy signal was observed that will be further explored in three (3) planned Phase II trials in the US and India in cervical cancer and its predecessor condition, cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). Advaxis now has nine (9) distinct cancer fighting constructs in various stages of development, both directly and with academic collaborators. For further information on the Company, please visit: [ www.advaxis.com ].
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements contained in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties.The statements contained herein that are not purely historical are forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.Forward-looking statements deal with the Company's current plans, intentions, beliefs and expectations and statements of future economic performance.Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause the Company's actual results in future periods to differ materially from what is currently anticipated.Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include those discussed from time to time in reports filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.The Company cannot guarantee its future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements.
