Umea, Sweden Jan 29, 2009 - Betagenon today announced that its lead AMPK activator drug candidate BG8702 aimed for the treatment of type2 diabetes has started Investigational Medicinal Product enabling studies in the UK. The selected compound is derived from the in-house drug discovery AMPK activator program. Treatment with BG8702 leads to significant improvement of insulin sensitivity, glucose and triglyceride lowering in diabetic mouse models.
“The selection of BG8702 to enter IMP enabling studies constitutes a major cornerstone in the history of Betagenon. We have been successful in generating different compound classes of potent oral AMPK activators. I see this as just the beginning bearing in mind that recent discoveries suggest that AMPK may be a potential target for the treatment of many indications. The goal is to move fast towards the clinic with this program”, Dr. Olof Karlsson, Chief Executive Officer, Betagenon AB said.
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Umea, Sweden September 15, 2008
Betagenon AB and iNovacia AB, hereby announce the signature of a significant collaborative agreement
Betagenon AB and iNovacia AB hereby announce an agreement to enter into a collaboration with the aim to rapidly and efficiently advance a novel and promising therapeutic identified at Betagenon.
iNovacia will support Betagenon, primarily by using its expert knowledge in lead optimization applying SAR driven Medicinal chemistry, physiochemical compound characterization and ADME profiling.
“We spent time and effort finding the right partner for our important discovery project. With the integrated services and the expertise available at iNovacia we are convinced we made the right selection of partner“, Says Dr. Olof Karlsson, CEO of Betagenon. “Our discovery has been very successful and shows high promise, now we have a need to accelerate the time to clinic”, continues Dr. Karlsson.
Dr. Thomas Olin, CEO of iNovacia commented, “At iNovacia we are proud to be chosen as drug discovery partner by Betagenon in such a key step of the project. It testified not only to the long experience and proven track record of our team, but to the level of responsiveness and efficiency we have been able to establish.”
About iNovacia
iNovacia provides drug discovery services to translate targets into validated leads for biotech and pharmaceutical companies. Enabled by a strong chemical library, unique applications of biophysical tools, and long-standing experience in drug discovery, iNovacia develops hits, from both fragment-based screening and conventional HTS with the company’s own libraries, or with those provided by a customer, into drug leads. iNovacia scientists are experts in optimizing the probability of success in development establishing a qualified early SAR/pharmacophore model.
Furthermore, iNovacia offers expertise in characterization and pre-formulation of protein pharmaceuticals and develops software for electronic capturing and analysis of experimental data to enhance research output. For more information see www.inovacia.se
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Umea, April 14, 2008
Antisoma licenses rights to develop Betagenon’s AMPK activators as cancer treatments
London, UK, and Umea, Sweden, 14 April 2008: Cancer drug developer Antisoma (LSE: ASM; USOTC:ATSMY) and Betagenon, a privately held Swedish biotechnology company, today announce that Antisoma has licensed rights to develop and commercialise Betagenon’s AMPK (AMP activated protein kinase) activators in cancer indications.
Betagenon has developed a series of small molecules that activate AMPK. AMPK is best known as a target in diabetes. Betagenon has shown that AMPK activators also have significant potential in cancer treatment, and has established a leading position in this novel application of the drugs.
Antisoma plans to continue the preclinical evaluation of AMPK activators from Betagenon’s pipeline. The two companies have also formed a collaboration to explore further the potential of AMPK-based approaches to cancer treatment.
Antisoma will make an immediate upfront payment and fund certain research at Betagenon. Further payments will be made on achievement of development and regulatory milestones, and royalties will be paid on any sales of compounds resulting from the collaboration.
Betagenon's Chief Executive Officer, Olof Karlsson, said: “We are delighted to be collaborating with Antisoma on our AMPK programme. We are confident that we have chosen a partner with the ability to advance our promising compounds rapidly and effectively in cancer.”
Antisoma’s Chief Executive Officer, Glyn Edwards, said: “Betagenon’s AMPK activators are another promising addition to our preclinical oncology portfolio. They fit with our strategy of acquiring a diverse range of novel and class-leading preclinical compounds with potential to add value to our clinical pipeline in the future.”
Background on Betagenon
Betagenon was founded in September 2001 to research, develop and commercialise pharmaceutical products based upon the extensive research knowledge and expertise in type 2 diabetes built up by Dr Helena Edlund and Dr Thomas Edlund. Its goal is to become one of the leading companies in the discovery and early stage development of novel, safe and effective therapies for treatment of obesity-related disorders including type 2 diabetes, fatty liver disorders linked to hyperinsulinaemia, and various forms of cancer. Please visit www.betagenon.com for more information on Betagenon
Background on AMPK and Betagenon’s AMPK agonists
AMPK is involved in a number of pathways that are important in cancer. Activation of AMPK by Betagenon’s agonists down‑regulates mTOR and EF2 and suppresses lipid synthesis in tumour cells.This has been associated with significant cancer cell-killing activity in vitro and anti-tumour activity in animal models.
Background on Antisoma
Headquartered in London, UK, Antisoma is a biopharmaceutical company that develops novel products for the treatment of cancer. Antisoma fills its development pipeline by acquiring promising new product candidates from internationally recognised academic or cancer research institutions. Its core activity is the preclinical and clinical development of these drug candidates. Please visit www.antisoma.com for further information about Antisoma.
Enquiries:
Glyn Edwards, CEO Daniel Elger, Director of Communications +44 (0)20 8799 8200 Antisoma plc
Olof Karlsson, CEO +46 (0)856 849 950 Betagenon AB
Mark Court/Lisa Baderoon/Rebecca Skye Dietrich +44 (0)20 7466 5000 Buchanan Communications
Brian Korb +1 646 378 2923 The Trout Group
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Stockholm, March 07, 2007 / --BMP4; a new factor for preservation of beta-cell function in type II diabetes
Impaired glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and perturbed proinsulin processing are hallmarks of beta cell dysfunction in type II diabetes. Factors that can be administered to patients that preserve and/or enhance beta cell function are therefore of great therapeutic interest. Prof Helena Edlund in collaboration with Betagenon AB now show in a publication in Cell Metabolism that the factor BMP4 specifically regulates genes involved in insulin production/secretion and beta-cell preservation, and demonstrate that exogenous BMP4 administration augments glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in vivo. These results pave the way for development of BMP4 as a drug that preserves beta-cell function in type II diabetics.
For
further information contact:
Olof
Karlsson, President Betagenon AB
Tel: +46 (0)8 568 499 50
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Betagenon announces changes in the Board of Directors
Stockholm, Aug 23, 2006 / -- Betagenon AB today announced that Lee Rubin, Harward, has been elected as chairman of the board. Further on, Jan Sandström has been elected to the company's board of directors.
Lee Rubin, currently at Harvard, contributes with experience from the US biotech sector and has an extensive experience from research and drug development. He has previously been with the Boston based biotech company Curis from its inception in August of 2000. Prior to that, he was the Vice President of Research at Ontogeny, one of the companies that later merged into Curis. Before Ontogeny, Dr. Rubin spent six years at Eisai London Laboratories at University College London, where he was director and professor of neurobiology, and four years at Athena NeuroSciences, Inc. as senior scientist and head of the blood-brain barrier program.
Jan Sandström, M.Sc Pharm. Contributes with extensive experience from the pharmaceutical and biotech sector. His experience covers positions as Senior VP, Business Development & Licensing, Biolipox AB. Formerly VP Business Development & Patents, Astra and Director, Global Licensing at AstraZeneca., Member of the Boards of Swedish Shareholder Association and SARF Service AB.
For
further information contact:
Olof
Karlsson, President Betagenon AB
Tel: +46 (0)8 568 499 50
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Betagenon raises 12MSEK in private financing
Stockholm, Jan 2, 2006 / -- Betagenon AB,
announces that it has completed a recent round of financing totaling 12
million SEK. New private and previous investors, led this financing.
Proceeds from this financing will support Betagenon´s core operating and
research activities and be used to expand its drug development programs.
Olof Karlsson, President of Betagenon, stated, "Betagenon is pleased to have
a strong base of financial support to fund the growth of our discovery and
development activities. Much of this funding will be used to advance our
preclinical programs.
For
further information contact:
Olof
Karlsson, President Betagenon AB
Tel: +46 (0)8 568 499 50
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Betagenon announces changes in the Board of Directors
Stockholm, Oct 18, 2005 / -- Betagenon AB today announced that Birgit Stattin-Norinder and Lee Rubin have been elected to the company's board of directors. Mrs. Stattin-Norinder will serve as chairman of the board and Dr. Rubin, as board member.
Mrs. Stattin-Norinder contributes with a wealth of experience from the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors built up over a career spanning more than 25 years of experience. She has held senior executive positions in R&D both national and international of a number of pharmaceutical companies including Pharmacia & Upjohn Corp, Glaxo Group Research Ltd, Astra Research Centre AB, Pfizer Inc. and Parke Davis AB. She has also served as CEO and Chairman of Prolifix Ltd, a UK biotechnology company. She serves on several Boards of both privately and publicly owned biotechnology companies.
Dr. Rubin contributes with experience from the US biotech sector and has an extensive experience from research and drug development. He has been with the Boston based biotech company Curis from its inception in August of 2000. Prior to that, he was the Vice President of Research at Ontogeny, one of the companies that later merged into Curis. Before Ontogeny, Dr. Rubin spent six years at Eisai London Laboratories at University College London, where he was director and professor of neurobiology, and four years at Athena NeuroSciences, Inc. as senior scientist and head of the blood-brain barrier program.
For
further information contact:
Olof
Karlsson, President Betagenon AB
Tel: +46 (0)8 568 499 50
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Umeå, Sweden 12 april 2005
Breakthrough links obesity and diabetes
Prof. Helena. Edlund, a founding member of Betagenon AB, publishes a breakthrough in our understanding of the link between obesity/FFAs and fatty liver, hepatic insulin resistance and diabetes-“the metabolic syndrome”. The G-protein coupled receptor GPR40 is selectively expressed in insulin-producing b-cells and activated by FFAs. Dr Edlund has shown that mice that lack GPR40 are protected from obesity-induced hyperinsulinemia, and from developing fatty liver, hepatic insulin resistance and diabetes. Conversely, over-expression of GPR40 in b-cells leads to failure to process and secrete insulin and to the development of overt diabetes. Thus, the FFA–receptor GPR40 plays an important role in the chain of events linking obesity/FFAs to fatty liver and diabetes. GPR40 is also expressed in insulin-producing b-cells in man, and represents a direct and highly selective novel drug target for obesity-associated disorders.
”The FFA receptor GPR40 links hyperinsulinemia, hepatic steatosis, and impaired glucose homeostasis in mouse” Pär Steneberg, Nir Rubins, Reut Bartoov-Shifman, Michael D. Walker, Helena Edlund. Cell Metabolism, April 2005.
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RIKTAD EMISSION TILL UMEÅ FÖRETAGET BALTICGRUPPEN AB.
Umeå, Sverige 17 december, 2003 – Betagenon AB, ett svenskt bioteknik företag i Umeå fokuserat på upptäckt och tidig utveckling av läkemedel för behandling av diabetes typ 2, meddelade idag att de har säkrat ytterligare finansiering genom en riktad emission till Balticgruppen AB och till dess ägare, Krister Olsson. Bolaget tillförs 5 miljoner kronor i utbyte mot aktier.
Betagenon är ett ungt forskningsintensivt företag med en djup och unik kunskap om nya mekanismer bakom de beta-cell defekter som leder till diabetes typ 2. Nyligen tecknade bolaget ett samarbetsavtal med AstraZeneca. Betagenon har en egen utvecklingslinje av lovande projekt inom typ 2 diabetes och säkerställer nu kapital för nyinvesteringar inom sina projekt.
”Vår strategi har varit att hitta en långsiktig regional partner med gedigen affärserfarenhet. Balticgruppen är därför en ideal partner för oss. Betagenon har sin forsknings och utvecklingsenhet i Umeå och vi ser det här som mycket intressant”, säger Olof Karlsson, VD för Betagenon.
”En investering i Betagenon´s unika kunskap och kunnande inom bioteknik ligger i vårt intresse och det här representerar vår ambition att satsa på ett Umeå baserat mycket intressant bolag. Vi ser fram emot att samarbeta med Betagenon och dess grundare i detta spännande fält”, säger Anders Blom från Balticgruppen AB.
Om Betagenon AB
Betagenon är ett bioteknik företag i tidig fas som grundades i september 2001. Målet är att forska, utveckla och kommersialisera nya läkemedel baserat på den omfattande kunskap och expertis som finns inom diabetes typ 2 uppbyggt av Dr Helena Edlund och Dr Thomas Edlund. Dr Helena Edlund är erkänd som en av de ledande experterna inom insulinproducerande beta-celler, och hur defekter i beta-cellen resulterar i diabetes typ 2. Betagenon’s forskning och utveckling är baserat i moderna laboratorielokaler i Uminova Science Park i Umeå och företaget har ett kontor i Stockholm.
Om Balticgruppen AB
Balticgruppen AB är ett privatägt regionalt bolag som med Umeå som bas
arbetar med fastighetsutveckling/förvaltning och företagsutveckling.
Företagets affärsmål är att skapa entreprenörsdriven utveckling och
värdetillväxt genom ett aktivt ägarengagemang i regionalt baserade företag
och fastighetsprojekt med god långsiktig tillväxtpotential.
www.balticgruppen.se
För mer information, vänligen
kontakta:
Betagenon AB, Olof Karlsson
Tel: +46 8 568 499 50, Fax: +46 8 568 499 40, info@betagenon.com
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BETAGENON AND ASTRAZENECA SIGN COLLABORATION AGREEMENT ON THERAPIES FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES
Stockholm, Sweden, October 24, 2003 – Betagenon AB a Swedish biotechnology company focused on the discovery and early stage development of drug therapies for treatment of type 2 diabetes announced today that it has entered into a collaboration agreement with AstraZeneca.
Type 2 diabetes is the most common metabolic disease with a high incidence in Western countries. Approximately 150 million people are currently affected by the disease and it is regarded to be epidemic in USA. Today’s most widely used diabetes drugs were developed several decades ago, with little understanding of the underlying disease mechanism. Consequently, type 2 diabetes is a chronic, incurable disease and sufferers have a high risk of developing life-threatening cardiovascular complications as the disease progresses. The acute clinical need and the large expanding market for new drugs represent an extraordinary market opportunity
It is now established that type 2 is manifested when the insulin producing beta cells fail to meet an increasing demand of insulin due to insulin resistance and/or obesity. Betagenon is a young research intensive company with an in-depth and unique knowledge about novel mechanisms of beta cell defects that cause type 2 diabetes.
The long-term goal of the collaboration is to enable AstraZeneca to develop new drugs that restore ability of the beta cells to meet the increased demand of insulin in type 2 diabetics. Betagenon has access to unique in vivo models in which the beta cells fail to produce and/or secrete enough insulin in a regulate manner, and which develop diabetes that closely mimics type 2 diabetes in man. These models will be used in the collaboration to develop a superior drug discovery platform. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“Our strategy has been to find the ideal pharmaceutical partner to efficiently develop these assets into novel drugs that can make a real difference for this very large and expanding group of patients. We are therefore extremely pleased to have reached a collaboration agreement with AstraZeneca, a leader in the pharmaceutical industry. We believe this collaboration demonstrates the value of the Betagenon frontier knowledge, and with this agreement we have passed an important milestone in our strategy”, says Olof Karlsson, President of Betagenon.
“Access to Betagenon’s knowledge and models is important for AstraZeneca as part of our efforts to develop new effective treatments for impared glucose tolerance and type 2 diabetes. We are looking forward to working with Betagenon and its founders in this exciting field” added Dr Ian Waddell Director of Bioscience, CV&GI, Alderly Park.
About AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca is a major international healthcare business engaged in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription pharmaceuticals and the supply of healthcare services. It is one of the top five pharmaceutical companies in the world with healthcare sales of over $17.8 billion and leading positions in sales of gastrointestinal, oncology, cardiovascular, neuroscience and respiratory products. AstraZeneca is listed in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (Global and European) as well as the FTSE4Good Index.
About Betagenon AB
Betagenon is an early stage biotechnology company founded in September 2001. Its goal is to research, develop and commercialise new pharmaceutical products based upon the extensive research knowledge and expertise in type 2 diabetes built up by Dr Helena Edlund, Dr Thomas Edlund and Dr Bo Ahrén. Dr Helena Edlund is acknowledged as one of the leading experts on how insulin producing beta cells are generated, and the role of beta cell defects in type 2 diabetes. Betagenons research and development is based in modern laboratory facilities at Uminova Science Park in Umeå and the company has its main office in Stockholm.
For further information, please contact:
Betagenon AB, Olof Karlsson Phone: +46 8 568 499 50
