NEW YORK, April 26, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Intellect Neurosciences, Inc. (OTCBB:ILNS), a biopharmaceutical company focused on development of disease-modifying therapeutic agents for Alzheimer's disease ("AD"), announced today it has completed a restructuring of its balance sheet. The result is the extinguishment of approximately $24 million of aggregate face amount plus accrued interest of debt and preferred stock through the issuance of common stock. Further, several of Intellect's significant shareholders have collectively provided sufficient funds to support the Company's core operations for the next 12 months.
"Our stakeholders recognize the value proposition inherent in Intellect's intellectual property and pipeline programs," said Daniel Chain, PhD., Intellect's Chairman and CEO. "This financial restructuring is a tremendous accomplishment, opening up exciting new strategic opportunities to develop our internal drug development pipeline. We are pleased that our largest shareholders have provided us immediate financial resources to sustain our operations for the next twelve months and are committed to continue to support the Company. The immediate cash infusion and our shareholders' financial commitment should enable the Company to maintain operations through completion of Phase 3 trials for Bapineuzumab."
Bapineuzumab is a monoclonal antibody being co-developed by Wyeth/Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson under a royalty-bearing license from Intellect. If successful in the trials, Bapineuzumab could be approved for sale as the first disease-modifying drug for Alzheimer's disease, with the potential to slow down or arrest disease progression. Leading analysts have concluded that Bapineuzumab has blockbuster potential that may reach several billion in annual worldwide sales.
A report in this month's issue of the medical journal Lancet Neurology (Vol. 9, Issue 4, Pages 363-372, and April 2010) indicates that Alzheimer's patients receiving Bapineuzumab show a significant reduction in amyloid plaques.
Dr. Chain is the inventor of the Company's ANTISENILIN® monoclonal antibody technology, for which patents have been granted in Europe, Japan, China and elsewhere. Patent applications are pending in the United States. Intellect granted a royalty-bearing license to Wyeth and Elan International Ltd. in 2008. Elan, through an affiliate, assigned the license to Janssen AI, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, in 2009. Intellect entered into a second royalty-bearing license agreement with an undisclosed top tier global pharmaceutical company in January 2009, and granted an option to purchase a license to GlaxoSmithKline in April 2009.
About Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, is characterized by progressive loss of memory and cognition, ultimately leading to complete debilitation and death. A hallmark feature of Alzheimer's pathology is the presence of insoluble protein deposits, known as beta-amyloid, on the surface of nerve cells, which results from the accumulation of soluble beta-amyloid in the brain. The effects of the disease are devastating to the patients as well as the caregivers, with significant associated health care costs. It is estimated that there are more than 5 million Americans and about 30 million people worldwide suffering from Alzheimer's disease, with the number expected to increase dramatically as the global population ages. Currently marketed drugs transiently affect some symptoms of the disease, but there are no drugs on the market today that slow or arrest the progression of the disease. These symptomatic drugs are projected to generate more than US $6 billion in sales by 2010, indicating both the size of the market and the demand for effective treatment beyond symptomatic improvements.
About Intellect Neurosciences, Inc.
Intellect Neurosciences, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of disease-modifying therapeutic agents for the treatment and prevention of Alzheimer's disease and other disorders. The Company's drug product pipeline includes OX1, which has been tested in Phase 1 clinical trials; IN-N01, a humanized monoclonal antibody designed to promote the clearance of soluble beta amyloid; and RECALL-VAX, a vaccine technology that has potential to delay or prevent Alzheimer's disease in people who are at risk. The Company has underlying intellectual property assets, including several patent families supporting its internal programs, and a pivotal patent estate regarding passive AD immunotherapy. The Company granted a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-bearing license to its ANTISENILIN® monoclonal antibody platform to Wyeth and Elan Pharma International Ltd., a similar non-exclusive license to another top tier global pharmaceutical company, and an option to purchase a license to GlaxoSmithKline.
For additional information, please visit http://www.intellectns.com
Safe Harbor Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
The statements in this release and oral statements made by representatives of Intellect 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, 2009, and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended December 31, 2009, filed on February 16, 2010.