Inovio Biomedical H1N1 Influenza DNA Vaccines Demonstrate 100% Responses Against Swine Flu in Vaccinated Pigs
Preclinical data validates capability of Inovio SynConTM DNA
vaccines to provide universal protection against unmatched flu
virus strains
SAN DIEGO, CA July 13, 2009 -- Inovio Biomedical Corporation (NYSE
Amex: INO), a leader in DNA vaccine design, development and
delivery, announced today that the company's SynCon™ H1N1
influenza DNA vaccines achieved protective antibody responses
against H1N1 swine influenza virus (A/Swine/Iowa/35233/1999) in
100% of pigs immunized with a two-dose vaccine regimen.
Dr. Niranjan Sardesai, Senior VP, Research & Development,
presented the data at the Annual Conference of DNA Vaccines in Asia
2009 held in Beijing, China, July 9-10, 2009, in a presentation
entitled, “Pandemic and Seasonal Influenza DNA Vaccines
Delivered Via Electroporation.”
In this study, scientists immunized pigs with consensus H1N1
influenza DNA vaccine candidates on day 0, day 14, and day 28. Sera
collected on day 28 and day 42, after two or three doses of
vaccine, respectively, showed hemagglutination inhibition (HI)
titers above the protection threshold in 100% of the vaccinated
animals against a swine H1N1 virus previously isolated from pigs.
On-going additional animal studies are testing the ability of
Inovio’s SynCon™ human H1N1 and swine H1N1 based
vaccines to cross-protect from currently circulating human and
swine H1N1 viruses as well as the new influenza A/H1N1 of swine
origin.
In a similar collaborative study with scientists from the National
Microbiology Laboratory of the Public Health Agency of Canada and
the University of Pennsylvania, Inovio previously demonstrated that
mice immunized with Inovio’s SynCon™ H1N1 DNA vaccine
provided 100% protection in a lethal challenge study against an
unmatched H1N1 virus that caused the 1918 Spanish flu, which killed
over 40 million people worldwide.
Dr. J. Joseph Kim, Inovio’s CEO, said, “Our innovative
SynCon™ technology has the potential to protect people from
influenza strains not exactly like the ones that make up the
existing vaccines. This is a clear advantage for our universal flu
program over conventional influenza vaccines. We are pleased to
report our H1N1 preclinical results using pigs, a more natural
model for the current influenza pandemic. We look forward to
advancing our SynCon™ universal flu vaccine program toward
clinical investigation.”
Inovio’s novel SynCon™ technology enables the company
to design DNA-based vaccines with the potential to protect against
unmatched sub-types and strains of pathogens. Inovio has created
SynCon™ DNA vaccines based on influenza HA, NA, and NP
proteins that are common to strains H1N1, H2N2, H3N2, and H5N1,
which make up the majority of seasonal and pandemic influenza.
Using a designer approach, Inovio can formulate these DNA plasmids
together to rapidly develop a universal influenza vaccine
potentially targeting all these strains. The resulting vaccine
could target seasonal as well as pandemic-potential influenza
strains such as avian influenza and swine flu, which has already
been designated pandemic status. Significantly, being based on a
common set of antigens derived from a broad range of flu strains,
such a universal vaccine would have the potential to provide
greater protection against evolving, unmatched flu strains.
About Inovio Biomedical Corporation
Inovio Biomedical is engaged in the design, development, and
delivery of a new generation of vaccines, called DNA vaccines,
focused on cancers and infectious diseases. The company’s
SynCon™ technology enables the design of DNA-based vaccines
capable of providing cross-protection against new, unmatched
strains of pathogens such as influenza. Inovio’s proprietary
electroporation-based DNA vaccine delivery technology has been
shown by initial human data to safely and significantly increase
gene expression and immune responses. Inovio’s clinical
programs include HPV/cervical cancer (therapeutic) and HIV
vaccines. An IND has been filed for an avian influenza vaccine.
Partners and collaborators include Merck, Tripep, University of
Southampton, University of Pennsylvania, and HIV Vaccines Trial
Network. Inovio’s product candidates and technologies are
protected by an extensive global intellectual property portfolio.
More information is available at www.inovio.com.
* * *
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements
relating to our plans to develop electroporation-based drug and
gene delivery technologies and DNA vaccines. Actual events or
results may differ from the expectations set forth herein as a
result of a number of factors, including uncertainties inherent in
clinical trials and product development programs (including, but
not limited to, the fact that pre-clinical and clinical results
referenced in this release may not be indicative of results
achievable in other trials or for other indications and that
results from one study may not necessarily be reflected or
supported by the results of other similar studies), the
availability of funding to support continuing research and studies
in an effort to prove safety and efficacy of electroporation
technology as a delivery mechanism or develop viable DNA vaccines,
the availability or potential availability of alternative therapies
or treatments for the conditions targeted by the parties or their
collaborators, including alternatives that may be more efficacious
or cost-effective than any therapy or treatment that the parties
and their collaborators hope to develop, evaluation of potential
opportunities, issues involving patents and whether they or
licenses to them will provide the parties with meaningful
protection from others using the covered technologies, whether such
proprietary rights are enforceable or defensible or infringe or
allegedly infringe on rights of others or can withstand claims of
invalidity and whether the combined company can finance or devote
other significant resources that may be necessary to prosecute,
protect or defend them, the level of corporate expenditures,
assessments of the companies’ combined technology by
potential corporate or other partners or collaborators, capital
market conditions, our ability to successfully integrate Inovio and
VGX Pharmaceuticals, the impact of government healthcare proposals,
our ability to maintain listing of our common stock under the rules
and regulations of the NYSE Amex and other factors set forth in our
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008,
our Form 10-Q for the three months ended March 31, 2009, and other
regulatory filings from time to time, including our current report
on Form 8-K reporting the closing of the merger transaction with
VGX Pharmaceuticals, Inc. There can be no assurance that any
product in Inovio’s pipeline will be successfully developed
or manufactured, that final results of clinical studies will be
supportive of regulatory approvals required to market licensed
products, or that any of the forward-looking information provided
herein will be proven accurate.
CONTACTS:
Investors:
Bernie Hertel, Inovio Biomedical, 858-410-3101
Media:
Jeff Richardson, Richardson & Associates,
805-491-8313
Posted: July 2009
