Vaccine patent portfolio licensed from UK Ministry of Defence

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March 2nd, 2009

   2009 MAR 2 -- Defyrus Inc. announced the signing an exclusive, worldwide license to a patent portfolio created by the United Kingdom's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and licensed by Ploughshare Innovation Ltd, Dstl's commercialization company. These patents form the intellectual property foundation of the Company's vaccine product development programs. Defyrus and Ploughshare Innovation Ltd plan to expand their commercial interaction in 2009 to include preclinical safety and efficacy studies as part of the Company's vaccine development program. The commercial terms of the license were not disclosed.

   The licensed technology of 27 issued & pending international patents, describes the production of multi-valent vaccines for the treatment of alpha-viral infections resulting from bioterrorism or endemic disease. These highly infectious, mosquito-borne encephalitis viruses pose a serious risk to people and livestock for which no vaccine or therapy exists.

   "Dstl has pioneered the investigation of effective medical countermeasures (e.g. vaccines and drugs) for the treatment of a number of important biological diseases that are potential biological warfare threats. Their unique approach to vaccine development and compelling animal efficacy data for viral encephalitis made this license attractive" commented Dr. Jeffrey D. Turner, President & CEO of Defyrus, "We see tremendous synergy in levering investor capital with successful Government R&D programs to drive cost-effective, rapid drug development forward. Improving our capability to respond to viral threats from endemic disease or biological warfare is our mission and represents a significant contribution to protecting the international community from dangerous pathogens".

   "Defyrus' business model has the hallmark of a true public-private collaboration. In licensing Dstl's technology to Defyrus, whose management team have a proven track record in vaccine development, Ploughshare expects that Dstl's pioneering work can be rapidly translated into vaccines that are available for both the public health markets in the developing world, as well as the North American and European defence markets" stated Andy Tulloch, Chief Executive Officer Ploughshare Innovations. "We look forward to expanding our interactions with Defyrus in the years to come" added Dr. David Harris, Head of Technology Transfer at Dstl.

   Keywords: Arbovirus Encephalitis, Biological Weapon, Biotechnology, Bioterrorism, Biowarfare, Business, Central Nervous System Disease, Clinical Trial Research, Clinical Trials, Encephalitis, Immunization, Marketing and Licensing Agreements, Medical Device, Patents Actions, Pre-Trials Research, Terrorism, Therapy, Treatment, Vaccination, Vaccine Development, Vaccines, Defyrus Inc.

   This article was prepared by Pain & Central Nervous System Week editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2009, Pain & Central Nervous System Week via NewsRx.com.

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