SAN DIEGO and CINCINNATI, Oct. 27,
2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Marshall
Edwards, Inc. (Nasdaq: MSHL), an oncology company focused on
the clinical development of novel therapeutics targeting cancer
metabolism, and Ausio Pharmaceuticals, LLC, a biopharmaceutical
company focused on the development of safe and effective medicines
for the aging population, announced today the signing of an
exclusive, royalty-bearing license agreement.
The agreement gives Ausio exclusive, worldwide rights under
certain Marshall Edwards patents to
develop, manufacture and sell products utilizing the isoflavone
metabolite known as equol for non-oncology applications. In
exchange, Marshall Edwards is
entitled to receive royalty payments on sales of any potential
Ausio products that contain equol. In addition, the agreement gives
Marshall Edwards a royalty-free
license to certain issued manufacturing-related intellectual
property owned by Ausio. Further terms of the agreement were not
disclosed.
"We are very pleased to enter into this licensing agreement with
Ausio, our first since completing the acquisition of our
isoflavone-based intellectual property portfolio earlier this
year," said Daniel P. Gold, Ph.D.,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Marshall Edwards. "This agreement demonstrates
our commitment to maximizing the value of these assets while
maintaining our focus on the clinical development of our two
current lead oncology drug candidates, ME-143 and ME-344."
"This exclusive license to Marshall
Edward's worldwide patents claiming the composition and
therapeutic uses of equol further strengthens our global patent
portfolio for S- and R-equol," said Richard
L. Jackson, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of
Ausio Pharmaceuticals. "S-equol, the S enantiomer of equol, is a
first-in-class, non-hormonal, non-steroidal estrogen receptor beta
agonist that is in Phase 2 clinical development for the treatment
of vasomotor symptoms in postmenopausal women and benign prostatic
hyperplasia in men, and for various topical uses."
About Ausio Pharmaceuticals
Ausio Pharmaceuticals, LLC, is a private biotechnology
development company focused on the advancement of safe and
effective medicines for the aging population. Ausio was founded in
2006 by Richard Jackson, Ph.D. based
on technologies licensed from the Australian Health and Nutrition
Association and Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. The
Company has garnered a strong patent position for its lead
compound, AUS 131 (also referred to as S-equol). It has rapidly
developed AUS-131 by working with excellent service providers.
Ausio's strategic goal is to collaborate with international
pharmaceutical partners for AUS-131 in the U.S. and other markets
worldwide. For further information on Ausio, please visit the
Company's website at www.ausiopharma.com.
About Marshall Edwards
Marshall Edwards, Inc. (Nasdaq:
MSHL) is a San Diego-based
oncology company focused on the clinical development of novel
anti-cancer therapeutics. The Company's lead programs focus on two
families of small molecules that result in the inhibition of tumor
cell metabolism. The first and most advanced is a NADH oxidase
inhibitor program that includes lead candidate ME-143. The second
is a mitochondrial inhibitor program that includes lead candidate
ME-344. The Company initiated a Phase I clinical trial of
intravenous ME-143 in September 2011
and expects to submit an IND application for ME-344 by the first
quarter of 2012. For more information, please visit
www.marshalledwardsinc.com.
Under U.S. law, a new drug cannot be marketed until it has
been investigated in clinical trials and approved by the FDA as
being safe and effective for the intended use. Statements included
in this press release that are not historical in nature are
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe
harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. You should be aware that our actual results could differ
materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements,
which are based on management's current expectations and are
subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including, but not
limited to, our failure to successfully commercialize our product
candidates; costs and delays in the development and/or FDA
approval, or the failure to obtain such approval, of our product
candidates; uncertainties or differences in interpretation in
clinical trial results; our inability to maintain or enter into,
and the risks resulting from our dependence upon, collaboration or
contractual arrangements necessary for the development,
manufacture, commercialization, marketing, sales and distribution
of any products; competitive factors; our inability to protect our
patents or proprietary rights and obtain necessary rights to third
party patents and intellectual property to operate our business;
our inability to operate our business without infringing the
patents and proprietary rights of others; general economic
conditions; the failure of any products to gain market acceptance;
our inability to obtain any additional required financing;
technological changes; government regulation; changes in industry
practice; and one-time events. We do not intend to update any of
these factors or to publicly announce the results of any revisions
to these forward-looking statements.
SOURCE Marshall Edwards, Inc.;
Ausio Pharmaceuticals