Richter-Helm and Athera Biotechnologies Partner in Development of Recombinant Protein to Treat Cardiovascular Disease

2009-01-21

Hamburg, Germany and Stockholm, Sweden, January 21st, 2009

Richter-Helm BioLogics GmbH & Co. KG and Athera Biotechnologies AB have signed an agreement for the development and manufacturing of Athera's novel product for prevention of plaque rupture and athero-thrombosis through binding of the protein, Annexin A5, to endothelium. The recombinant protein Annexin A5 is intended for the treatment of patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome and who are at imminent risk for Myocardial Infarction.

This agreement secures a highly cost efficient long-term development and manufacturing plan for Athera, including possible future large volume commercial production. Annexin A5 is a biotechnology product produced using Richter-Helm's proprietary E. coli based expression system. Richter-Helm will initiate strain and process development of the new process, reaching a 1000 litre production scale.

"The Annexin A5 project fits well with the competence and experience of our company. We are confident that our collaboration will be as efficient and constructive as our negotiations were. Our state-of-the-art facilities are ideal for producing the high-quality Annexin A5 required to comply with the standards of the regulatory agencies.", stated Dr. Bert Behnke, Managing Director of Richter-Helm.

"We are very pleased to get Richter-Helm as our development partner, they have an excellent reputation. We have now secured cost competitive and high quality production for clinical and commercial use", said Carina Schmidt, CEO of Athera Biotechnologies.