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Avantogen and Hawaii Biotech Combine Vaccine Businesses; World-Class
Vaccine Developer is Created to Accelerate Pandemic Influenza, West
Nile and Dengue Fever Vaccine Programs
Avantogen Limited (Avantogen)(ASX:ACU), and Hawaii Biotech, Inc.
(Hawaii Biotech), a privately held company, closed today on the
Definitive Agreement executed and announced on March 14, 2006,
combining their respective vaccine businesses. The Company will
continue to be known as Hawaii Biotech, Inc., and is 50% owned each
by Hawaii Biotech's current shareholders and Avantogen Limited. Both
Avantogen and Hawaii Biotech's shareholders gave approval for the
transaction.
The combined business will incorporate both Avantogen's and Hawaii
Biotech's complementary technologies, and will maintain the existing
corporate headquarters and vaccine development laboratories in Oahu,
Hawaii, as well as an office in California.
Under terms of the agreement, Avantogen contributed US $3.5 million
in cash, its vaccine adjuvant program (currently in Phase I human
trials) and Pentrys vaccine program (currently in Phase II human
trials), and its senior management team, while Hawaii Biotech
contributed its vaccine research and development team, its pre-
clinical vaccine programs and facilities, its vaccine grant funding,
and US $1 million in cash. Under certain circumstances applicable to
both Avantogen and Hawaii Biotech, equity ownership of the newly
combined company can be adjusted to 60%-40% in either direction.
Following a meeting of the new Hawaii Biotech, Inc. Board of
Directors, Leonard Firestone, M.D., an experienced biotech
executive, was named CEO of Hawaii Biotech, Inc., while Carolyn
Weeks-Levy, current VP of Research, Development, and Regulatory
Affairs and leader of Hawaii Biotech's vaccine programs, was named
its Chief Scientific Officer. David G. Watumull, Hawaii Biotech's
former CEO, has become CEO of Cardax Pharmaceuticals, Inc., an anti-
inflammatory small molecule development business in Honolulu, which
was spun out of Hawaii Biotech and is wholly owned by the pre-
combination Hawaii Biotech shareholders.
Hawaii Biotech's Board members are: Avantogen Chairman Richard Opara
(Chairman), Nicholas Mitsakos, Hawaii Biotech's former Chairman;
Leonard Firestone, M.D., CEO; Joseph Boystak, former Managing
Director with Jefferies & Co and now with Chopin Capital Partners;
and Richard Foster, who will continue to serve as Director.
The CEO, Dr. Firestone, commented: "This business combination was
driven by scientific, fiscal, and corporate synergies, and has
created a truly world-class vaccine development company. Hawaii
Biotech's scientific team has capabilities with recombinant
technology that can uniquely and genuinely address the spectre of
pandemic viral disease. The Company's exceptional manufacturing
platform will allow us to lead the marketplace, by rapidly
delivering the quality and quantity of vaccine product needed for
viral pandemics such as Influenza. These same manufacturing methods
will also support the development of our valuable West Nile and
Dengue Fever vaccine products, both of which we expect to enter the
clinic in 2007."
About Hawaii Biotech's Vaccine Business
Hawaii Biotech's vaccine development platform is based on production
of proprietary antigens (proteins) that, when appropriately
adjuvanted, provoke immune responses equivalent to, or better than,
traditional live or inactivated viral vaccines -- with a
significantly improved safety profile. During the past 3 years,
Hawaii Biotech received funding commitments of over US $30 million
from the U.S. National Institutes of Health and other governmental
agencies, to develop vaccines to prevent human infection by the West
Nile virus, Dengue Fever virus, pandemic and annual Influenza
viruses, and other serious incurable diseases including hepatitis C,
malaria, Tick-borne and Japanese encephalitis, Ebola, and Eastern
equine encephalitis.
About Avantogen's GPI Adjuvant
Avantogen's GPI-0100 product, a triterpene saponin, is currently
under license to Pfizer Animal Health, Inc., Endocyte, Inc.,
University of Alabama, and Memorial-Sloan Kettering Cancer Center,
to boost immune responses to their respective vaccine-based products
under development.
About Avantogen, Ltd.
Avantogen (formerly Australian Cancer Technology) is an
international biotechnology company developing a broad oncology-
related product portfolio. Avantogen has acquired the North American
marketing rights for RP101, a promising pancreatic cancer drug
currently in Phase II clinical studies through a subsidiary company,
Resistys Inc, a joint venture with Bioaccelerate of New York.
Avantogen's Pentrys(R) anti-cancer vaccine is being evaluated in
prostate cancer patients in Phase IIb clinical studies and the
company is advancing several immune enhancing adjuvants in three
Phase I cancer trials. The immune enhancing adjuvants were developed
by Galenica, a privately held U.S. vaccine developer. Avantogen
acquired Galenica in July 2004. The company also markets Revisys(R),
a branded line of medical nutritionals designed for people with
special needs, including those undergoing cancer treatments.
Avantogen is traded on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) under the
symbol ACU. The company has established a Level 1 ADR stock program
in the U.S. trading under the symbol AUCJY and is listed on the
Xetra exchange, the electronic trading system of the Frankfurt Stock
Exchange, trading under the symbol CBS. For further information,
visit www.Avantogen.com.
About Pandemic Influenza and "Bird Flu"
The Centers of Disease Control (CDC) defines an influenza pandemic
as a global outbreak that occurs when a new, virulent influenza A
virus "emerges" in the human population, and spreads easily from
person to person worldwide. Local outbreaks of "bird flu" may be a
source of a new flu virus. Pandemics are different from seasonal
outbreaks or "epidemics" of influenza. Seasonal outbreaks are caused
by subtypes of influenza viruses that already circulate among
people, whereas pandemic outbreaks are caused by new subtypes
that "emerge," or by subtypes that haven't circulated among people
for a long time, or ever. Past influenza pandemics have led to high
levels of illness, death, social disruption, and economic loss. The
severity of the next pandemic cannot be predicted, but models
suggest that in the absence of any control measures (e.g.,
vaccination), a "medium-level" pandemic in the U.S. could cause 89 -
207,000 deaths, 314 - 734,000 hospitalizations, 18 - 42 million
outpatient visits, and another 20 - 47 million people being sick.
Between 15% and 35% of the U.S. population could be affected by an
influenza pandemic, and the economic impact could range between
$71.3 and $166.5 billion.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this press release that are not historical
information are forward-looking statements as contemplated by the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-
looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or
implied. Such potential risks and uncertainties relate, but are not
limited to, the results of clinical trials, product demand and
market acceptance, the impact of competitive products and pricing,
effectiveness and pace of current and future product development,
and regulatory approval. More detailed information on these and
additional factors that could affect Avantogen's business, prospects
and operating and financial results are described in Avantogen's
annual reports filed or to be filed with the Australian Stock
Exchange. Avantogen urges all interested parties to read these
reports to gain a better understanding of the many business and
other risks that the company faces. For further information visit
www.avantogen.com. The historical results achieved by the company
are not necessarily indicative of its future prospects. The company
undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-
looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future
events or otherwise.
CONTACT:
Hawaii Biotech, Inc. Leonard Firestone, M.D., 808-486-5333
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