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Inovio Adds Significant Patents Relating to Electroporation-Enabled Delivery of Therapeutic Molecules

Posted on: Wednesday, 11 January 2006, 06:00 CST

Inovio Biomedical Corporation (AMEX:INO), a late stage developer of cancer and other therapies using electroporation to deliver drugs and nucleic acids, announces that its subsidiary, Genetronics, Inc., was recently granted two significant patents relating to the use of electroporation to deliver useful therapeutic agents in humans.

U.S. patent 6,958,060, entitled, "Method for Muscle Delivery of Drugs, Nucleic Acids and Other Compounds" substantially broadens the company's claims over in vivo electroporation of muscle tissue and consequently the protectable monopoly for electroporation of muscle tissue.

U.S. Patent Number 6,972,013, entitled, "Enhanced Delivery of Naked DNA to Skin by Non-Invasive In Vivo Electroporation" adds significantly to Inovio's pioneering position in the use of electroporation to deliver DNA and other nucleic acids into skin for the purpose of DNA vaccination and gene therapy.

"These patents add to Inovio's leading position in the clinical application of electroporation. For example, the '060 patent expands the coverage of the Company's primary patents directed at basic electroporation methodologies that are important in the multiple Phase I clinical studies being conducted by Inovio's strategic partners," stated Avtar Dhillon, MD, Inovio's president and CEO. "The '013 patent involving DNA electroporation of the skin expands the delivery methods toward the development of next generation DNA vaccines and gene therapeutics in an area we are actively partnering."

About Electroporation

Electroporation refers to the application of very brief electrical pulses to a target tissue to temporarily increase the permeability of biological membranes. Electroporation can be used to dramatically increase the cellular uptake of useful therapeutic agents. Pre-clinical studies have shown that, in the case of therapeutic DNA and other nucleic acid molecules, electroporation can increase resulting gene expression by one hundred to one thousand times. Enhanced gene expression leads to more effective vaccines and gene therapies. In preclinical studies, electroporation has shown advantages over other methods of DNA delivery in terms of safety, efficacy and cost. For DNA vaccines, greater rapidity and magnitude of the immune response has also been demonstrated.

About Inovio Biomedical Corporation

Inovio Biomedical Corporation is a late stage biomedical company focused on commercializing its proprietary Selective Electrochemical Tumor Ablation (SECTA) therapy. SECTA targets a significant unmet clinical need: the local treatment of solid tumors, with selective killing of cancer cells while preserving healthy tissue. Inovio is moving its lead product, the MedPulser(R), through pre-marketing studies for head and neck cancer and skin cancers in Europe, where it has CE Mark accreditation, a U.S. Phase III pivotal study for head and neck cancer, and Phase I trials for pancreatic and breast cancer. Merck, Vical, University of Southampton, and H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center are using Inovio's gene delivery technology in clinical studies of novel DNA therapeutics delivered using electroporation. Inovio is a leader in developing human therapeutic applications of electroporation, with the industry's most extensive patent portfolio covering in vivo electroporation. More information is available at www.inovio.com.

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements relating to Inovio's plans to develop its electroporation drug and gene delivery technology and to maximize shareholder value. Actual events or results may differ from Inovio's expectations as a result of a number of factors, including the uncertainties inherent in clinical trials and product development programs, evaluation of potential opportunities, the level of corporate expenditures, the assessment of Inovio's technology by potential corporate partners, capital market conditions, and other factors set forth in Inovio's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2004, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended September 30, 2005, and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. There can be no assurance that any product in the Inovio product pipeline will be successfully developed or manufactured, or that final results of clinical studies will be supportive of regulatory approvals required to market licensed products.

Source: Business Wire

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