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| HUMAN GENOME SCIENCES AND BIOINVENT ANNOUNCE COLLABORATION TO CO-DEVELOP AND COMMERCIALIZE THERAPEUTIC ANTIBODIES | |
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ROCKVILLE, Maryland and LUND, Sweden – March 11, 2010 – Human Genome Sciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: HGSI) and BioInvent International AB (OMXS: BINV) today announced that they have entered into a collaboration to discover, develop and commercialize therapeutic monoclonal antibodies that specifically target antigens discovered by HGS. Under the terms of the agreement, BioInvent will apply its state-of-the art antibody discovery technology to generate and develop monoclonal antibody candidates. The collaboration will initially focus on the development of antibodies in the field of inflammation. HGS and BioInvent will each have the right to participate in development and global commercialization of each antibody candidate, and will share research, development, manufacturing and commercialization costs as well as future revenues. Specific terms were not disclosed. “We continue to make excellent progress in advancing our late-stage products toward commercialization, and at the same time we remain committed to building and advancing our research pipeline to ensure sustainable growth well into the future,” said H. Thomas Watkins, President and Chief Executive Officer, HGS. “We look forward to collaborating with BioInvent to apply their proprietary technology to the development of targeted new therapies based on HGS discoveries.” Svein Mathisen, Chief Executive Officer of BioInvent, said, “Access to commercially attractive targets to which we can apply our antibody discovery engine is an important part of BioInvent’s strategy. We believe this collaborative agreement is a strong and valuable way of building our pipeline of innovative drugs as BioInvent and HGS’s research strengths are both complementary and synergistic. We are looking forward to working closely with HGS in what we believe will be a long-term, productive collaboration.” About the BioInvent Proprietary Antibody Discovery Platform
About the HGS New Targets Initiative
About BioInvent
These projects are based around a competitive and in substance patented antibody development platform. The scope and strength of this platform is also utilized by partners, such as ALK-Abelló, Bayer HealthCare, Daiichi Sankyo, ImmunoGen, Mitsubishi Tanabe, OrbusNeich, UCB and XOMA. More information is available at www.bioinvent.com. About Human Genome Sciences
HGS’s primary focus is rapid progress toward the commercialization of its two lead drugs, BENLYSTA™ (belimumab) for systemic lupus and ZALBIN™ (albinterferon alfa-2b) for hepatitis C. Phase 3 development has been completed successfully for both BENLYSTA and ZALBIN. The submission of marketing applications for BENLYSTA is planned in the U.S., Europe and other regions in the second quarter of 2010. A BLA has been submitted for ZALBIN to the FDA in the United States, and an MAA has been submitted under the brand name JOULFERON® to the EMEA in Europe. In April 2009, HGS completed the delivery of 20,000 doses of raxibacumab to the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile for use in the event of an emergency to treat inhalation anthrax. In July 2009, HGS secured a new purchase order for 45,000 doses, and delivered the first 5,600 doses to the Stockpile under the new order in November 2009. HGS also has several drugs in earlier stages of development for treatment of cancer, led by the TRAIL receptor antibody mapatumumab and a small-molecule antagonist of inhibitor-of-apoptosis proteins. In addition, HGS has substantial financial rights to certain products in the GSK clinical pipeline including darapladib, in Phase 3 development in patients with coronary heart disease, and Syncria® (albiglutide), in Phase 3 development in patients with type 2 diabetes. For more information about HGS, please visit the Company’s web site at www.hgsi.com. Health professionals and patients interested in clinical trials of HGS products may inquire via e-mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or by calling HGS at (877) 822-8472. HGS, Human Genome Sciences, BENLYSTA, and ZALBIN are trademarks of Human Genome Sciences, Inc. Other trademarks referenced are the property of their respective owners. HGS Safe Harbor Statement
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