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July 25,
2005
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Kirin
to acquire Hematech, LLC
Aims to accelerate development of fully human polyclonal antibody medicines
Acquisition includes production techniques, patents
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Tokyo, July 25, 2005-Kirin Brewery Company, Limited ("Kirin") today announced
that on July 18, 2005 it had closed on the acquisition of substantially all of
Hematech, LLC ("Hematech"). The agreement was signed by Katsuhiko Asano, president
of Pharmaceutical Division for Kirin, and James M. Barton, CEO for Hematech, among
other parties, and means that Hematech has become a subsidiary of Kirin.
Through this acquisition, Kirin has acquired Hematech's core technology and research
infrastructure for production of bovine-derived human polyclonal antibodies. As
a result, Kirin will hold Hematech's rights primarily related to polyclonal antibody
production, along with the development and marketing rights already held by Kirin.
Human antibody-producing cows, containing full-length human antibody genes, are
expected to prove useful for the development of a range of human antibody-based
drugs. In 1999 Kirin and Hematech entered into a research collaboration agreement
on the development of human antibody-producing cows. In 2002 Kirin made use of
a proprietary human artificial chromosome vector to introduce human antibody genes
into bovine cells and, using Hematech's technology, created cows capable of producing
human antibody proteins and bovine antibody proteins. Subsequently, Kirin and
Hematech have progressed to developing cows that can efficiently produce human
antibodies.
Kirin has already successfully developed a human antibody-producing mouse, and
has formed a strategic alliance with US company Medarex, Inc. to commercialize
this technology on a global basis. Whereas human antibody-producing mice are used
for the development of monoclonal antibodies, human antibody-producing cows will
be used for the development of large quantities of polyclonal antibodies, which
are expected to contribute to the development of treatments for viral or bacterial
infections, autoimmune disorders, and other medical conditions.
The pharmaceutical industry currently uses gamma globulin preparations extracted
and refined from human blood serum. By making use of human antibody-producing
cows it will become possible to create an efficient, safe, and steady supply of
polyclonal antibodies. This is expected to have widespread implications for the
development of new medicines to combat a variety of infectious and other diseases.
| Outline
of company acquired |
| Company name: |
Hematech, LLC |
| Head office: |
Sioux Falls, SD, United
States |
| Representative: |
James Robl |
| Established: |
1998 |
| Main business: |
Venture business relating to the development and production of antibodies. Owner of technology for the production of transgenic cows. |
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