Genset licenses entire therapeutic rights for Chlamydia.

Genset S.A. (Paris, France; 33-1-55-04-59-00) and Ricerca Biosciences, LLC (Concord, OH; 440-357-3090) announced an agreement under which Genset has granted to Ricerca Biosciences an exclusive worldwide license to all therapeutic applications resulting from Genset's patent applications covering the full-length genomic sequences of Chlamydia pneumoniae and Chlamydia trachomatis, two important infectious agents. Under this agreement, Ricerca will own rights to all anti-infective drugs developed through the programs and Genset will receive an equity position in Ricerca along with patent issuance and development milestones, as well as royalties from any drugs and drug candidates developed and/or co-developed by Ricerca. Other terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

"With today's agreement, we are pleased to announce the launch of our infectious diseases program, which combines our expertise in drug development and anti-infectives with Genset's intellectual property to develop therapeutics targeting Chlamydia," said Prabhavathi Fernandes, Chief Executive Officer of Ricerca. "Recent information has established a strong link between Chlamydia infection and atherosclerosis and knowledge of the Chlamydia genome can help us develop drugs that are specifically targeted to Chlamydia, that could potentially be used to treat chronic cardiovascular diseases."

Ricerca is actively licensing a portfolio of new genomic targets and lead candidate molecules in anti-infectives and oncology for internal drug development. Genset has previously licensed the vaccine rights for the Chlamydia intellectual property to Wyeth and retains diagnostic rights until a suitable partner is identified.

Marc Vasseur, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Genset, commented: "Genset's intellectual property on Chlamydia genomes is one of the valuable assets Genset's genomics program has generated. By granting the therapeutic rights to Ricerca, Genset will be able to share in any revenues generated from the development and marketing of drugs in the anti-infective area." Marc Vasseur continued: "We are confident that Ricerca, with its extensive drug development expertise and wealth of experience in the anti-infectives area, will successfully use Genset's IP."

Chlamydia pneumoniae and Chlamydia trachomatis are bacteria responsible for a wide range of human diseases, representing large untapped markets. C. trachomatis infection is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the United States, with the Centers for Disease Control estimating an annual incidence of about 4.5 million new cases. C. trachomatis is also one of the most common infectious causes of blindness worldwide. C. pneumoniae is the third most common cause of acute respiratory disease, and has been implicated in several chronic diseases, including atherosclerosis, and is associated with coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction, carotid artery disease, and cerebrovascular disease. Broad-spectrum antibiotics that can be used to treat acute infections are not advised in the treatment of chronic diseases such as atherosclerosis due to the possibility of developing drug resistance. Ricerca aims to develop drugs by comparing the C. pneumoniae and C. trachomatis genomes to find novel targets involved in the causes of chronic diseases.

Genset is a genomics-based biotechnology company focused on generating a pipeline of drug targets and candidates in the areas of CNS and metabolic disorders. Genset has successfully used its integrated technology platform and association studies approach to identify and characterize drug targets and drug response markers in the fields of CNS, metabolic and other diseases. Building upon the expertise accumulated in various alliances with pharmaceutical partners and its portfolio of genomic patents, Genset is pursuing and validating novel drug targets and candidates for its own account. Its teams have already discovered and launched the development of a lead protein candidate in the obesity field named Famoxin, and are continuing their research with a view to discovering and developing other drugs.

Ricerca Biosciences, a worldwide drug development partner to biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, has the ability to move lead molecules from the discovery stage through the IND and NDA development phases.

The company has biology, chemistry, and regulatory support services at one site allowing it to offer an integrated solution that includes discovery lead optimization, preclinical development (including in vitro and in vivo Pharmacology/Toxicology and drug metabolism evaluations), and drug substance synthesis from preclinical through clinical development. Ricerca has expanded these Contract Development services through alliances with gvk bioSciences, Pvt. Ltd. for medicinal chemistry and informatics, Siegfried, Ltd., Chemi, SpA and Sumika Fine Chemicals, Inc. for drug substance manufacturing, oral formulations development with Shire Laboratories, Inc. and FDA regulatory support and clinical planning/monitoring with Pharmaceutical Information Associates, Ltd.

Through recently announced licensing activities, Ricerca is developing internal programs in oncology and infectious diseases, to gain a greater share in the value of rapidly bringing new drugs to the market with its pharmaceutical partners. Ricerca also provides innovative solutions to the agricultural and specialty chemicals industries.