Radient Pharmaceuticals Announces Formation of New Subsidiary NuVax Therapeutics
Inc.
http://www.dailyfinance.com/rtn/pr/radient-pharmaceuticals-announces-f ormation-of-new-subsidiary-nuvax-therapeutics-inc/rfid393740707/?channel=pf
TUSTIN, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 12/07/10 -- Radient Pharmaceuticals Corporation (RPC) (NYSE Amex: RPC) in partnership with Jaiva Technologies, today announced the formation of NuVax Therapeutics, Inc. ("NuVax") -- a wholly owned subsidiary of Radient Pharmaceuticals. The formation of NuVax Therapeutics is a strategic move on the part of RPC to enhance the Company's Q2 2010 collaboration agreement with U.S.-based Jaiva Technologies -- a biotechnology company focused on the research and development, distribution, marketing and sales of promising third-party healthcare technology products.
NuVax, a clinical stage pharmaceutical company, aims to develop novel immune-gene therapeutics that have the potential to significantly impact and extend the quality of life for cancer patients. Through the newly formed NuVax Therapeutics, RPC and Jaiva Technologies will utilize RPC's Combined Immunogene Therapy ("CIT") cancer therapy to carry out human phase II clinical trials and develop products that will be first in-line therapies for largely unmet medical needs for cancer. The rights to RPC's CIT technology are anticipated to be transferred to NuVax and 100% of future product development and commercialization, including the development and in-licensing of the up to five additional cancer-fighting technologies will be managed through NuVax under the leadership of Jaiva Technologies Founder, President and CEO Dr. Umesh Bhatia. Dr. Bhatia's team will be responsible for engagement with clinical laboratories, hospitals and physicians in multiple international locations; conducting clinical trials for CIT technology; securing government approval for the use of CIT as a cancer therapy and vaccine throughout select markets; expansion and management of stage II clinical trials in multiple international locations including the U.S.; and full commercialization of CIT and all other in-licensed therapies in other select international markets.
In 2001, RPC acquired CIT for approximately US$2 million in cash. The Company has since invested approximately US$1 million in additional capital for patent protection with a U.S. patent issued May 25, 2004. Developed by Dr. Lung-Ji Chang, CIT is a cancer therapy that works by simultaneously incorporating two genes directly into a patient's tumor cells to enhance their immune system's natural ability to destroy other cancer cells. CIT targets cancer cells for immunological attack while simultaneously stimulating a stronger immune response against the tumor cells. Dr. Chang currently serves as a consultant to RPC for the continued development of CIT and other gene therapies.
According to RPC Chairman and CEO Mr. Douglas MacLellan, "The formation of NuVax Therapeutics provides a unique platform to significantly accelerate and expand our planned collaboration with Jaiva Technologies, specifically as it relates to the commercialization of CIT, in-licensing new cancer therapies and conducting stage II human clinical trials to ultimately introduce these products to market. Simultaneously, it allows us to dedicate RPC resources to the continued worldwide commercialization of our Onko-Sure In Vitro Diagnostic cancer test. Together we anticipate success through both Companies to drive long-term growth and shareholder value."
To support the growth and success of NuVax, RPC and Jaiva Technologies have established an internationally renowned executive and scientific team and board of directors that include RPC Chairman and CEO Mr. Douglas Maclellan, RPC COO and Chief Financial Officer Mr. Akio Ariura, Jaiva Technologies Founder, President and CEO Dr. Umesh Bhatia, RPC Board member Mr. Michael Boswell, Dr. Lung-Ji Chang, Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology at the University of Florida Gainesville, and Dr. Afsaneh Motamed-Khorasani, Director of Oncology at RPC.
New to the team is Dr. Donald P. Francis -- Dr. Francis worked for CDC from 1971 to 1992: smallpox (assigned to WHO) in India, Bangladesh, Sudan and the former Yugoslavia, cholera in Nigeria, Ebola in Sudan, Assistant Director, Hepatitis Division, Assistant Director, Virology Division. From 1981 he worked on HIV/AIDS: Coordinator of Laboratory Activities (Atlanta), Consultant to State of California (Berkeley) and San Francisco Mayor's office. His AIDS efforts were chronicled in "And the Band Played On," by Randy Shilts. In 1993 he joined Genentech where his HIV vaccine work began. In 1995, Dr. Francis co-founded a spin-off of Genentech called VaxGen where the world's first efficacy trials were completed in the United States, Canada, Holland and Thailand. In 2004, Dr. Francis retired from VaxGen to establish a not-for-profit foundation, Global Solutions for Infectious Diseases, dedicated to developing vaccines for the less developed parts of the world. In 2009, the first successful HIV vaccine trial was reported. That trial used GSID's vaccine combined in a "prime-boost format" with one from Sanofi. In addition to HIV, Dr. Francis works with international vaccine manufacturers on vaccines for dengue and influenza. He is a frequent consultant for WHO. Dr. Francis is anticipated to serve as an advisor and member of NuVax's Board of Directors of NuVax.
After completing undergraduate studies at the University of California at Berkeley, Dr. Francis received his M.D. from Northwestern University and his Doctor of Science in Virology from Harvard. In addition, he completed his pediatric training at the University of Southern California Medical Center in Los Angeles and his infectious disease training at Harvard.
About Jaiva Technologies
Jaiva Technologies is a US-based biotechnology company founded by Dr. Umesh Bhatia that is focused on the research and development, distribution, marketing and sales of promising third-party healthcare technology products, including RPC's CIT cancer therapy and vaccine.
About Radient Pharmaceuticals:
Headquartered in Tustin, California, Radient Pharmaceuticals is dedicated to saving lives and money for patients and global healthcare systems through the deployment of its FDA-cleared In Vitro Diagnostic Onko-Sure® Test Kits for colon-rectal cancer recurrence monitoring The company's focus is on the discovery, development and commercialization of unique high-value diagnostic tests that help physicians answer important clinical questions related to early disease-state detection, treatment strategy and the monitoring of disease progression or recurrence. To learn more about our company, people and potentially life-saving cancer test, visit.
Forward-Looking Statements:
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: The statements contained in this document include certain predictions and projections that may be considered forward-looking statements under securities law. These statements involve a number of important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially including, but not limited to, the performance of joint venture partners, as well as other economic, competitive and technological factors involving the Company's operations, markets, services, products, and prices. With respect to Radient Pharmaceuticals Corporation, except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this document are forward-looking statements involving risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements.
