Yissum Licensing Agreement Amendment
Perth, May 7, 2015 AEST (ABN Newswire) - PhytoTech Medical Limited (
ASX:PYL) (the ‘Company’) today announces a favourable addition to its licensing and collaboration agreement with Yissum Research Development Company of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem Ltd (‘Yissum’).
Highlights
- Extension of exclusive licensing agreement with Yissum to include a third patent application claiming an additional new innovative nanoparticle formulation, with an improved bioavailability capacity
- The proprietary formulation is intended to further enhance the oral bioavailability of cannabinoids, addressing the currently inherent problem of very low bioavailability of cannabinoids, when administered orally
- This formulation is designed to increase the potential of developing superior products under Phytotech’s portfolio, which now compromises an Oral capsule, with two unique formulations, a Transbuccal patch and a Vaporiser device
PhytoTech intends to test the two licensed formulations on patients in a Phase 1 clinical study, due to commence by Q4 2015
- Transfer of license agreement to PhytoTech Therapuetics Ltd, the Israel based wholly owned subsidiary of PhytoTech Medical Limited, to take immediate effect to enable the company to take advantage of available R&D grants in the region
- Further solidifies the partnership with Yissum, Hebrew University's prestigious technology transfer company, which has successfully commercialised intellectual properties, which commercial companies have developed into products the sale of which have US$2Bn in revenues annually
The agreement has been extended to include the exclusive licensing rights of an improved nanoparticle delivery formulation, developed by Profs’ Abraham Domb and Amnon Hoffman both from The Institute for Drug Research at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem,intended to further increase the oral bioavailability of drugs with poor water solubility and limited bioavailability.
The active ingredients in cannabis, Cannabidiol (CBD) and Tetrahyrocannabidiol (THC), typically show very low levels of oral bioavailability (approximately 6%), which has led to the drug historically being unsuitable for oral administration.
The newly added proprietary formulation contains a modification to the formulation already licensed by PhytoTech to further enhance the bioavailability by increasing the absorption of the drug from the gastrointestinal tracts, thereby reducing the required dose of the drug and enhancing its reproducibility.
The two formulations will begin patient testing in a Phase 1 clinical study, which is due to commence by Q4 2015. The purpose of the clinical study is to test the formulations and determine the one with the greatest performance in delivering THC and CBD. It will be the first study in a series of studies aimed at developing a product for the treatment of pain and spasticity in Multiple Sclerosis patients.
In addition, pursuant to this amendment with Yissum, PhytoTech Medical Limited will assign the rights and obligations to its wholly owned subsidiary PhytoTech Therapeutics Ltd, allowing the Israeli business to exploit the license and the product once developed.
Once the license is transferred, the Israeli company will be eligible to apply for R&D grants from the Israeli Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS), which provides financing of 20 to 50 percent to approved R&D programs, and from Horizon 2020, the largest EU Research and Innovation program with nearly €80 billion of funding available over a 7 year period, which commenced in 2014.
Boaz Wachtel, Managing Director of PhytoTech Medical Limited commented:
“We are very pleased to be able to extend our agreement with Yissum, a leader in transfer of innovative medical technologies from academia to industry, to include another innovative and significant formulation. The bioavailability of CBD and THC when administered orally is inherently low, and by utilising this new formulation we believe there will be synergistic enhancements, improving the bioavailability of the cannabis when administered to patients. This development will further increase our ability to effectively compete with, and hopefully one day replace, existing medical cannabis pharmaceutical products in the market”.
About MMJ Group Holdings Ltd
MMJ Group Holdings Ltd (ASX:MMJ) is a global cannabis investment company. MMJ owns a portfolio of minority investments and aims to invest across the full range of emerging cannabis-related sectors including healthcare, technology, infrastructure, logistics, processing, cultivation, equipment and retail. For MMJ's latest investor presentation and news, please visit: https://www.mmjphytotech.com.au/investors/
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