OXFORD, England, February 9, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Circassia Ltd, a specialty biopharmaceutical company focused on allergy, today announced that it has acquired the worldwide development and commercialization rights to the novel topical therapeutic for psoriasis and atopic dermatitis, PAP-1. Circassia acquired the rights to the proprietary molecule from Airmid Inc, for an undisclosed upfront sum plus milestone payments and royalties on future product sales.

PAP-1 is one of the most potent and selective Kv1.3 inhibitors known, and has ideal topical delivery characteristics. The molecule is a highly specific immunosuppressant, acting on effector memory T-cells while leaving naive and central memory T-cells intact, and has demonstrated impressive activity in psoriasis and atopic dermatitis models when applied topically.

"PAP-1 is an ideal strategic fit with Circassia's focus on immuno-based therapeutics, and we intend to advance this novel treatment into the clinic as quickly as possible," said Dr Rod Hafner, Circassia's Vice President, R&D. "PAP-1's extremely selective immunosuppression combined with its excellent topical delivery characteristics make it the ideal candidate for a psoriasis and atopic dermatitis treatment. By specifically targeting effector memory T-cells and leaving other components of the immune system intact, PAP-1 has the potential to offer the efficacy of topical steroids while avoiding their side-effects."

"Out-licensing topical PAP-1 is a major milestone for Airmid, and we are delighted to have attracted a team of Circassia's high caliber to progress the development of this important therapeutic," said Dr George Miljanich, CEO of Airmid. "We look forward to Circassia's success, which will further validate this class of novel molecules as a highly promising source of safe and effective medicines."

About Circassia's allergy T-cell vaccines

Circassia is developing a range of allergy T-cell vaccines based on its proprietary ToleroMune(R) technology. The company has successfully completed a number of phase II studies with its cat, house dust mite and ragweed allergy products, and its grass allergy therapeutic is in clinical testing. Clinical results to date show that short treatment regimes with Circassia's T-cell vaccines can greatly reduce patients' allergic reactions, without the need for adjuvants or other immune stimulators, while proving extremely well tolerated. As a result, the treatments offer major potential clinical benefits compared with existing therapies, and have significant market opportunities. Over 150 million people suffer from allergic rhinitis in the US and Europe, and the current treatment market is approximately $12 billion per year.

About Circassia

Circassia was founded in 2006 by a team of highly experienced biotechnology scientists and entrepreneurs, and is chaired by the former Chairman of GlaxoSmithKline, Sir Richard Sykes. The company is based in the UK on the Oxford Science Park, and in Hamilton, Canada, where its joint venture Adiga Life Sciences is located. Its ToleroMune technology was developed originally by scientists at Imperial College, London. Having successfully completed three fundraising rounds Circassia is backed by a syndicate of world-class venture capital and institutional investors, including Imperial Innovations, Invesco Perpetual, Goldman Sachs and Lansdowne Partners.

About Airmid

Airmid is a privately held pharmaceutical company based in Redwood City, California. The company is focused on developing its proprietary novel potassium ion channel blockers as safer and more effective medicines for a variety of autoimmune diseases that are inadequately treated by current therapies. These include multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis. The company's lead investor is the Biotechnology Value Fund. For more information on Airmid please visit http://www.airmid.com.

    Contacts

    Steve Harris
    CEO
    Circassia
    Tel: +44(0)1865-784574
    http://www.circassia.co.uk

    Rob Budge
    RJB Communications
    Tel: +44(0)1865-760969
    Mobile: +44(0)7710-741241

SOURCE Circassia Ltd

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