OvaRex(R) is Cornerstone of Five Product Collaboration
WALTHAM, Mass., April 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AltaRex Corp.
(AXO.TO, ALXFF.OTC) announced today that AltaRex and a wholly-owned subsidiary
of United Therapeutics Corporation have entered into an exclusive license
agreement for the development of five monoclonal antibodies that activate the
immune system to treat cancer. The strategic collaboration is centered on
AltaRex's OvaRex(R) (oregovomab) antibody that is currently in late-stage
clinical development for the treatment of metastatic ovarian cancer. The four
additional products are intended to treat lung, breast, prostate, multiple
myeloma and other forms of cancer.
(Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000831/ALTREXLOGO )
Under the terms of the agreement, the United Therapeutics subsidiary
receives exclusive rights for development and commercialization of the five
products worldwide, with the exception of rights retained by AltaRex to the
European Union and to certain other countries in accordance with existing
commercialization agreements. While conducting a comprehensive review of the
program, and thereafter upon satisfactory completion of its redesign, United
Therapeutics will cover the cost of clinical trials, manufacturing and other
development expenses for each product. AltaRex will receive development
milestone payments and royalties from product sales. In addition, AltaRex has
granted to the United Therapeutics subsidiary a right of first refusal to any
products developed or acquired by AltaRex which have applications in the
treatment of cancer.
"I am pleased about this agreement because it fits so well with United
Therapeutics' strategy of inlicensing unique therapeutic products that are in
a late-stage of clinical development and show significant promise for
addressing unmet medical needs, particularly in orphan indications," said
Martine Rothblatt, Chairman and CEO of United Therapeutics. "The AltaRex
program may fit well with our ongoing assessment of the anti-metastatic
properties of our lead drug, Remodulin, which is the subject of growing
interest among cancer researchers."
"AltaRex is pleased to have entered into this agreement with United
Therapeutics," said Richard Bagley, President and CEO of AltaRex. "We believe
that of the proposals that AltaRex had been considering, the collaboration
with United Therapeutics represents the best fit and the best value for our
shareholders and cancer sufferers, all of whom we expect will share in the
success of the Company's oncology products and technology platform. We will
continue to build our technology platform, both with United for the cancer
field and on our own. Our collaboration with United Therapeutics affords us
the opportunity to explore the application of our novel technology to new
therapeutic areas. We are also pleased that AltaRex will maintain control of
our current oncology product portfolio as it pertains to the European Union
market."
As part of this transaction, United Therapeutics purchased 4.9 million
common shares of AltaRex, at a premium of ten percent to a predetermined
five-day market average, with gross proceeds to AltaRex of approximately
$2,450,000 (all dollar amounts herein are stated in U.S. dollars). In
addition, AltaRex has issued a nominal ($50,000) convertible debenture to
United Therapeutics that is secured by the intellectual property of AltaRex.
AltaRex also has issued United Therapeutics a warrant exercisable at the
option of United Therapeutics into an additional 3.25 million common shares of
AltaRex for proceeds to AltaRex of $1,625,000. Further, AltaRex has granted
to United Therapeutics a right to purchase a debenture in the principal amount
of $875,000. With shareholder approval, $441,690 of the principal amount of
the debenture will convert into 883,380 common shares of AltaRex. The right
to exercise the warrant and purchase the convertible debenture will expire on
August 20, 2002. Assuming exercise of the warrant and conversion of the
debenture, United Therapeutics would own approximately 19.9% of the current
outstanding common shares of AltaRex. United Therapeutics has also received
rights to purchase 19.9% of certain future financings of AltaRex. If United
Therapeutics does not exercise the warrant or purchase the debenture, AltaRex
may terminate the license agreement. After discussion with securities
regulatory authorities and in light of the equity investment and loan by
United Therapeutics, AltaRex's previously announced (March 7, 2002) private
placement offering of Special Warrants has been cancelled.
AltaRex will now focus its business development efforts on seeking
collaborators to develop and commercialize its oncology pipeline in Europe and
will redirect its discovery efforts to an existing joint collaboration with
Epigen and to certain new therapeutic areas.
AltaRex has scheduled a teleconference and webcast to discuss this
strategic collaboration. Please join on Thursday, April 18, at 11:00 a.m.
(EST).
To access, call toll-free 1-800-997-8642, or visit the AltaRex website
(http://www.altarex.com ) for a webcast link. For international callers*,
dial 973-694-2225.
A rebroadcast of the teleconference will be available for one week by
dialing 1-800-428-6051 or 973-709-2089 for international calls. The PIN for
both rebroadcast numbers is 239583. The webcast also accessed for one week on
the Company's website.
*The majority of callers from Canada can use the 1-800 numbers
eMedsecurities, Inc. has acted as an advisor to United Therapeutics for
this transaction.
AltaRex Corp. is focused on the research, development and
commercialization of antigen-targeted antibody-based therapies for life
threatening diseases utilizing monoclonal antibodies as immunotherapeutic
agents. AltaRex has established proprietary expertise for the use of antigen-
binding agents, specifically foreign monoclonal antibodies, to alter patients'
immune system responses in a therapeutically beneficial manner for conditions
that include cancer, infectious diseases and autoimmune diseases.
For more information about AltaRex, please visit the Company website at
http://www.altarex.com .
This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks
and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from
the statements made. For this purpose, any statements that are contained
herein that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-
looking statements. Without limiting the foregoing, the words "believes,"
"anticipates," "plans," "intends," "expects" and similar expressions are
intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties
include, but are not limited to AltaRex's need for capital and the risk that
the AltaRex can not raise funds on a timely basis on satisfactory terms or at
all, the need to obtain corporate alliances such as the collaboration with
United and the risk that AltaRex cannot establish corporate alliances on a
timely basis, on satisfactory terms, or at all, or that, if established such
alliances will be successful, changing market conditions, uncertainties
regarding the timely and successful completion of clinical trials, patient
enrollment rates, uncertainty of pre-clinical, retrospective, early and
interim clinical trial results, which may not be indicative of results that
will be obtained in ongoing or future clinical trials, whether AltaRex or its
collaborator(s) such as United will file for regulatory approval for products
on a timely basis, uncertainties as to when, if at all, the FDA will accept or
approve regulatory filings for products, the need to establish and scale-up
manufacturing processes, uncertainty as to the timely development and market
acceptance of the products, uncertainty as to whether patents will issue from
pending patent applications and, if issued, as to whether such patents will be
sufficiently broad to protect AltaRex's technology, and other risks detailed
from time-to-time in AltaRex's filings with the United States Securities and
Exchange Commission and Canadian securities authorities. AltaRex does not
assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statement.
THE TORONTO STOCK EXCHANGE HAS NOT APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED OF THE
INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN.
SOURCE AltaRex Corp.
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Related links:
http://www.altarex.com
Photo Notes:
NewsCom:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000831/ALTREXLOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org
PRN Photo Desk, 888-776-6555 or 212-782-2840
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/128163.html
CONTACT:
Richard Bagley, President & CEO, of AltaRex
Corp., +1-781-672-0138, ext. 1601, dbagley@altarex.com
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