Contacts: Paul Edwards Chief Executive Officer GeneMedix 011 44 207 830 9648 Steve Parkinson President and Chief Executive Officer TranXenoGen 508 842 5036 GeneMedix in Global Licensing Deal with TranXenoGen Inc. March 1, 2000 - London, England. GeneMedix plc the UK biogeneric pharmaceutical company, announced today that it has entered into an agreement to license its novel insulin precursor gene, a product of its gene technology, to US biotechnology company TranXenoGen Inc., Shrewsbury, MA. GeneMedix is involved in the development and manufacture of therapeutic proteins using recombinant DNA technology. The company has completed several stages of its development work and is setting up operations in Asia to manufacture its products for the treatment of hepatitis, cancer and kidney dialysis patients. TranXenoGen has developed a novel sperm-mediated transgenics technology for producing human proteins in the albumen of chicken’s eggs. This second-generation transgenics technology will be used to produce insulin for use in the treatment of diabetes. The incidence of patients with diabetes worldwide is projected to increase from 125 million in 1994 to 300 million by 2025 due to rising obesity, the "western diet" and the ageing population. The global diabetes market was valued at $5.2 billion in 1994. TranXenoGen's innovative technology will enable the economic manufacture of large quantities of the therapeutic protein and leave it well placed to supply insulin to this rapidly growing market. GeneMedix has granted an exclusive worldwide license to TranXenoGen for use of its novel insulin precursor gene in transgenic applications. Under the terms of the agreement, GeneMedix will receive $6 million in milestone payments plus royalties on worldwide sales of the insulin product. The majority of the value of the milestone payments relate to product approval. Commenting on this announcement, GeneMedix CEO Paul Edwards said, "TranXenoGen has an exciting platform technology for producing large quantities of human proteins in eggs. We are therefore delighted to be collaborating on this project which may also pave the way for other further opportunities. This is the first completed deal since the Company joined OFEX in January." # # #
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