LONDON and BUCKINGHAMSHIRE, United Kingdom, Jan. 27, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Amersham (LSE, NYSE, OSE: AHM), a leader in medical diagnostics and in life sciences today announced that it has signed a non-exclusive agreement giving Pfizer access to Amersham's proprietary HeliSpin(TM) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system. Under the agreement, which will allow continuation of earlier successful clinical studies, Pfizer will fund an evaluation of HeliSpin as a tool for use in its respiratory drug development program.
HeliSpin, which is part of Amersham's Spin Signal(TM) portfolio, allows high speed, high resolution quantitative imaging of the lung using MRI. It is part of Amersham's Imanet(TM) business which also offers Positron Emission Tomography (PET) to accelerate and improve the quality of drug discovery and development by the pharmaceutical industry.
Enquiries:
Europe Investors: Alexandra Morris Tel +44 1494 542 051 Media: Dr Graeme Holland Tel +44 1494 542 115 Dr Lynne Gailey Tel +44 1494 542 050
US Investors & Media: Lucy Morrison Tel +1 732 457 8092
Editor's notes: Imanet(TM) Imanet is Amersham's international network of leading imaging research centres (www.imanet.com). It's business is to provide pharmaceutical and biotech companies with imaging solutions to accelerate and facilitate the discovery and development of novel therapeutics. Imanet uses PET, a quantitative imaging technology which provides information on biochemical and physiological processes and drug-receptor interactions at a molecular level. It also incorporates Amersham's HeliSpin imaging system, which is based on a powerful MRI technology allowing precise, high-speed quantitative anatomical and flow measurements in body cavities such as the lungs.
In PET research, Imanet today comprises Hammersmith Imanet, formerly the MRC Hammersmith Cyclotron Unit, London, UK; Uppsala Imanet, formerly Uppsala University PET Centre, Uppsala, Sweden and Turku Imanet, formerly the contract research arm of the Turku PET Centre, Turku, Finland. Imanet has a dedicated research unit, Malmo Imanet in Malmoe, Sweden, which practises the HeliSpin imaging system.
HeliSpin(TM)
HeliSpin allows for the first time, high speed, high resolution quantitative imaging of body cavities using MRI. This new ability could significantly reduce the timescale and the cost of developing new respiratory drugs. HeliSpin is part of Amersham's proprietary Spin Signal portfolio. Spin Signal relies on a laser pumping action which gives rise to nuclear spin alignments in inert gases 3He and 129Xe which are 100,000 greater than is normally achieved in a 1.5T magnet, making it possible to image these gases with spacial and temporal resolution which has never previously been possible.
PET
PET is a nuclear medicine imaging technique that provides computerised axial images through a patient's body, providing functional information. PET is a rapidly growing imaging technology unequalled by other imaging methods in its ability to provide diagnostic information at the molecular level. The pharmaceutical industry is increasingly using PET to improve the speed and accuracy of evaluating the performance of new molecules in man, shortening times to bring new products to market and reducing risks in costly development programs.
Amersham plc (LSE.NYSE, OSE: AHM) is a leader in medical diagnostics and in life sciences. Headquartered in the UK, the company had sales of (Pounds)1.62 billion in 2002 and has over 10,000 employees worldwide. Its strategy is to build its position as a leading provider of products and technologies enabling disease to be better understood, diagnosed earlier and treated more effectively.
Amersham - bringing vision to medical discovery
For additional information, visit the Amersham plc web site at www.amersham.com