PARIS, April 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Nautilus Biotech, a leading
 biotechnology company, has announced that it has raised EUR8.4 million
 ($11.3 million) in investment funding. The investors in this round include
 Creabilis Biotech, Ed. de Rothschild Investment Partners, Auriga Partners,
 Matignon Technologies, Pre-IPO Invest, FCJE, 123 Ventures and Genopole(R).
 The legal advisors were Hammonds Hausmann.
     The proceeds of the financing will be used to fund the initial clinical
 development of Nautilus Biotech's two lead products, Belerofon(R) and
 Vitatropin(R).
     Belerofon and Vitatropin are, respectively, proprietary variants of
 human Interferon alpha and human Growth Hormone. Each has a single amino
 acid replacement, making them both long-lasting in serum following
 injection and, for the first time, orally available.
     Earlier this month Nautilus Biotech initiated in the US a Phase I
 clinical trial for subcutaneous Belerofon. In February the Company
 submitted an Investigational New Drug (IND) filing for oral Belerofon to
 the US Food and Drug Administration and plans to start clinical trials
 later this year. The company also expects to submit an IND filing for
 Vitatropin in 2007.
     Commenting on the funding, Manuel Vega, Nautilus Biotech's CEO, said:
 "We are pleased to have secured this financing round which, when combined
 with our increasing revenues, will enable Nautilus Biotech to progress its
 planned clinical development programmes to the next step".
     Philippe Peltier, Partner at Auriga Partners, commented: "Nautilus
 Biotech has made very significant progress in developing innovative
 technologies that have great commercial potential. The continuing support
 of existing investors demonstrates the confidence we have in the Company,
 its strategic goal of clinically developing protein drugs with
 significantly improved therapeutic profiles, and its ability to form
 partnerships with the pharmaceutical industry".
     About Nautilus Biotech
     Nautilus Biotech is a leading biotechnology company with a novel
 pipeline of next-generation therapeutic proteins with superior profiles.
 The Company's protein engineering technology improves the pharmacology
 profile and administration route of important blockbuster protein drugs.
     The therapeutic proteins market is currently valued at over $35bn, and
 is growing at a rate of 10-15% per annum. Nautilus Biotech has created a
 portfolio of next-generation products with improved profiles, including
 long-lasting Interferon alpha (Belerofon(R)), hGH (Vitatropin(R)),
 Interferon beta, Erythropoietin, Interferon gamma, Clotting Factor IX (in
 collaboration with Wyeth Pharmaceuticals) and HMGB1-BoxA (in collaboration
 with Creabilis Therapeutics). Nautilus Biotech has established a strong
 intellectual property position covering enhanced versions of these
 multibillion dollar molecules and is rapidly moving these products into
 clinical development.
     Nautilus Biotech is a private company with headquarters in Genopole(R)
 biopark, (Evry, France). For more information about Nautilus Biotech visit
 www.nautilusbiotech.com
     Media Contact for Nautilus Biotech
 
     Deborah Gaskell, Account Manager
     Tel: +44-(0)20-7268-3237
     Email: nautilusbiotech@northbankcommunications.com
 
 

SOURCE Nautilus Biotech

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