Deal Strengthens AbD Serotec's Position as Source of Core Reagents to Study Cell Proliferation and Cell Kinetics
MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) announced today that its research and diagnostic antibodies unit AbD Serotec has signed a license agreement with The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London, which provides AbD Serotec with worldwide exclusive rights to commercialize the prototypic and most popular BrdU antibody clone for research applications. The agreement covers clone BU1/75 (also known as ICR1), allowing development in a range of formats suitable for various applications such as ELISA, flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry.
Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) - an analog of the DNA base thymidine - is a reagent commonly used in the detection of proliferating cells in living tissues and tissue samples. During DNA synthesis, BrdU can be incorporated into the newly synthesized DNA of dividing cells. Subsequent detection of BrdU incorporated into DNA using antibodies is a powerful tool for studying the cytokinetics of normal and diseased cells. In vitro or in vivo labeling of tumor cells with BrdU and the subsequent detection allows easy and rapid analysis of tumor cell growth kinetics with high accuracy.
'With this agreement AbD Serotec will become the sole supplier of this important BrdU antibody, a powerful tool to detect cell proliferation and cell kinetics assays,' commented Dieter Feger, Head of AbD Serotec. 'This product complements our comprehensive range of high quality cell biology reagents covering key research areas such as apoptosis, cancer, cell signaling, and cell morphology.'
About MorphoSys:
MorphoSys is an independent biotechnology company that develops novel antibodies for therapeutic, diagnostic and research applications. The Company's HuCAL technology is one of the most powerful methods available for generating fully human antibodies. By successfully applying this and other proprietary technologies, MorphoSys has become a leader in the field of therapeutic antibodies, one of the fastest-growing drug classes in human health-care. Through its alliances with some of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies, MorphoSys has created a pipeline of more than 60 drug candidates. The Company is expanding its drug pipeline by adding new partnered programs, and by building a portfolio of fully-owned therapeutic antibodies. For its proprietary portfolio, the Company is focused on the areas of oncology and inflammation. Its most advanced program MOR103, a first-in-class, fully human antibody against GM-CSF, is currently tested in a Phase Ib/IIa trial in rheumatoid arthritis patients. Via its business unit AbD Serotec, MorphoSys is expanding the reach of its technologies in the diagnostics and research markets. MorphoSys is headquartered in Munich, Germany and listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol 'MOR'. For further information, visit http://www.morphosys.com/
HuCAL®, HuCAL GOLD®, HuCAL PLATINUM®, CysDisplay® and RapMAT® are registered trademarks of MorphoSys.
About The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR):
· The ICR is Europe's leading cancer research centre
· The ICR has been ranked the UK's top academic research centre, based on the results of the Higher Education Funding Council's Research Assessment Exercise
· The ICR works closely with partner The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust to ensure patients immediately benefit from new research. Together the two organisations form the largest comprehensive cancer centre in Europe
· The ICR has charitable status and relies on voluntary income, spending 90 pence in every pound of total income directly on research
· As a college of the University of London, the ICR also provides postgraduate higher education of international distinction
· Over its 100-year history, the ICR's achievements include identifying the potential link between smoking and lung cancer which was subsequently confirmed, discovering that DNA damage is the basic cause of cancer and isolating more cancer-related genes than any other organisation in the world
· For more information visit www.icr.ac.uk
This communication contains certain forward-looking statements concerning the MorphoSys group of companies. The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the judgment of MorphoSys as of the date of this release and involve risks and uncertainties. Should actual conditions differ from the Company's assumptions, actual results and actions may differ from those anticipated. MorphoSys does not intend to update any of these forward-looking statements as far as the wording of the relevant press release is concerned.
For more information, please contact:
MorphoSys AG
Dr. Claudia Gutjahr-Löser
Head of Corporate Communications & IR
Tel: +49 (0) 89 / 899 27-122
Mario Brkulj
Senior Manager Corporate Communications & IR
Tel: +49 (0) 89 / 899 27-454
Jessica Kulpi
Specialist Corporate Communications & IR
Tel: +49 (0) 89 / 899 27-332