MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) announced today that Shionogi & Co., Ltd., Osaka, Japan, has elected to expand its currentresearch license to cover the use of MorphoSys's HuCAL PLATINUM technology in drug discovery. In April 2009, MorphoSys and Shionogi entered into an agreement under which, for pre-agreed terms, Shionogi could gain access to HuCAL PLATINUM, the latest and most powerful MorphoSys antibody library, for a six-month beta test period. During this test period, Shionogi was able to compare HuCAL PLATINUM with its predecessor HuCAL GOLD®, and found the new library to be considerably better.
'We have had the pleasure of using the MorphoSys HuCAL PLATINUM library for the last six months and were extremely impressed. HuCAL PLATINUM's capabilities go beyond any other antibody sourcing library we have used in the past, and we are very excited about being able to continue to use the PLATINUM library in the future,' commented Dr. Yoshito Numata, Department Head, Drug Target Discovery, Discovery Research Laboratory.
'Shionogi has been able to test-drive the latest version of our antibody library HuCAL PLATINUM extensively. Thus, their decision to upgrade speaks clearly to the quality and the success of our internal technology development work in recent years,' commented Dr. Marlies Sproll, Chief Scientific Officer of MorphoSys.
Under the terms of the agreement, Shionogi will now have the right to use HuCAL PLATINUM for research purposes at one of its sites. As a result of the expansion, MorphoSys will receive increased annual user fees from Shionogi. Further financial details were not disclosed.
MorphoSys and Shionogi signed a three-year license agreement on the use of MorphoSys's HuCAL technology in September 2005. Under the terms of the agreement, MorphoSys granted Shionogi access to its HuCAL GOLD antibody library for research applications in Shionogi's drug discovery programs. The research alliance was extended for three additional years in September 2008. The HuCAL PLATINUM library was introduced in September 2008. PLATINUM contains several significant improvements over the previous version of the HuCAL library. The new library is based on the genetic information of approximately 45 billion different fully human antibodies.
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, visithttp://www.morphosys.com/
HuCAL®, HuCAL GOLD®, HuCAL PLATINUM®, CysDisplay® and RapMAT® are registered trademarks of MorphoSys AG.