NEW YORK, Aug. 7, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Intellect Neurosciences, Inc. (OTCBB:ILNS), a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of disease-modifying therapeutic agents for the treatment of Alzheimer's and other neurological diseases today issued the following Letter to Shareholders from Dr. Daniel Chain, Chairman and CEO.
Dear Shareholder,
The disappointing news yesterday from the bapineuzumab Alzheimer's Phase 3 Study 301 underscores the enormous challenges inherent in developing a successful disease-modifying treatment, particularly for this complex disease, despite the scientific community's confidence regarding the therapeutic target. The disappointment will be felt most acutely by the millions of Alzheimer's patients and their families who were hoping for an end to their suffering. Nevertheless, we should all take heart in the tremendous body of critically important information that has accumulated from these pioneering programs, and we salute the pharmaceutical companies for their leadership in pursuing them. As a result, we now are better positioned to improve clinical trial designs and to select candidates that are likely to yield viable disease-modifying treatments. We are pleased bapineuzumab development will continue; Johnson & Johnson spokeswoman Ellen Rose said, "A mid-stage brain imaging trial of a subcutaneous version of bapineuzumab will continue." It is our hope that the companies may eventually test this version of bapineuzumab in pre-Alzheimer's patients if the results of the study are favorable.
Intellect remains at the forefront of identifying viable treatments for this terrible condition. The company's competitive approach is two-pronged. The first is steering away from monotherapy against a single target, which may be ineffective in Alzheimer's disease. The second is focusing on pre-fibrillar tau protein. Pre-fibrillar tau protein is understood increasingly to be responsible for the irreversible damage to nerve cells after accumulation of beta amyloid, which brings about pathogenic changes to tau. In addition, we intend to put significant emphasis on translational biomarkers in the planned preclinical testing phase of our compounds to assist future clinical trial design. The sophisticated high-resolution brain and cell imaging tools the industry has at its disposal were not available until recently, so their inclusion in our planned preclinical studies will be a huge clinical and competitive advantage over compounds in later-stages of development today. Further, our relationships with key experts in the field have led to important new collaborations. As we generate and publish data from these collaborations, the interest in our programs currently being shown by several pharmaceutical companies will increase and could result in partnerships long before some of these programs reach clinical trials.
With our hand on the pulse of the latest scientific developments and our ability as a small innovation-driven company to act swiftly, we added six new patent families in less than two years. These patents cover new therapeutic products and an extremely promising new platform technology that could generate multiple partnering opportunities. Just hours before yesterday's bapineuzumab news broke, I presented at the IBC Antibody Drug Conjugates, Bispecifics & Empowered Antibodies Conference. My talk focused on N01-OX2, the lead compound of our CONJUMAB-A platform, which has promise for the treatment of dry and wet age related macular degeneration (AMD). AMD therapies generate $4 billion annually, even though the few approved treatments don't cure the disease and offer only modest improvements in vision for most patients. Our program already has attracted interest from global pharmaceutical companies, even at this early stage.
Intellect Neurosciences has carefully planned a survival strategy to ensure its continued viability. In doing so, we have remained ahead of the curve with respect to next-generation therapies by creating multiple distinctive platform technologies that generate drug candidates for a wide variety of diseases. We also have protected our work through an extensive global patent portfolio. Consequently, Intellect has a significant value proposition in our preclinical programs and in our OX1 product, which was licensed to ViroPharma and is anticipated to enter Phase 2 clinical trials in patients with Friedreich's Ataxia. With the anticipated completion of Phase 2 trials by 2015, Intellect could receive in excess of $100 million in milestone payments from ViroPharma and, upon regulatory approval, royalties from sales in this orphan indication over many years. Prior to 2015, new licensing deals for our pipeline programs could yield substantial non-dilutive capital.
Thank you for your continued support of Intellect Neurosciences and our important mission to create a world without Alzheimer's disease and other debilitating neurodegenerative diseases.
Sincerely,
Daniel Chain, Ph.D.
Chairman & CEO
Safe Harbor Statement Regarding Forward--Looking Statements:
The statements in this release and oral statements made by representatives of Intellect Neurosciences relating to matters that are not historical facts (including, without limitation, those regarding future performance or financial results, the timing or potential outcomes of research collaborations or clinical trials, any market that might develop for any of Intellect's product candidates and the sufficiency of Intellect's cash and other capital resources) are forward-‐looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the likelihood that actual performance or results could materially differ, that future research will prove successful, the likelihood that any product in the research pipeline will receive regulatory approval in the United States or abroad, or Intellect's ability to fund such efforts with or without partners. Intellect undertakes no obligation to update any of these statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-‐looking statements, which speak only as to the date hereof. Accordingly, any forward-looking statements should be read in conjunction with the additional risks and uncertainties detailed in Intellect's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including those factors discussed under the caption "Risk Factors" in Intellect's Annual Report on Form 10-K (file no. 333-‐128226), filed on October 13, 2011, and in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended March 31, 2012, filed on May 14, 2012.