Anosys Announces First U.S. Patent for Exosome Technology, A New Approach to Immunology

MENLO PARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 13, 2004--Anosys, Inc. today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has issued Patent No. 6,685,911, the first patent in the U.S. related to exosomes, a new, fundamental approach to immunology. This technology is applicable to the development of therapeutics and diagnostics for a broad range of diseases.

Anosys' most advanced, exosome-based program has focused on the development of new cancer therapies. The Company has completed a Phase I clinical study in the U.S. in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have failed current therapies, and a second Phase I trial in Europe in advanced melanoma patients. Anosys anticipates initiating in the first half of 2004 a Phase II trial designed to demonstrate initial evidence of efficacy of the Company's proprietary exosome-based cancer therapy in patients with NSCLC.

Philippe Maitre, CEO of Anosys, commented, "Exosome-based therapies represent a broad platform for clinical development of vaccines. We have experienced great progress in our oncology program and have seen promising results in our early trials of cancer patients. The new patent, to which Anosys has exclusive rights, will be an important part of our IP portfolio underlying our cancer and other commercial development programs."

According to Jean-Bernard Le Pecq, Anosys' Chief Science Officer, "This first patent covers methods for the production and purification of exosomes for therapeutic and other uses. It is a first, very important step in covering exosome applications and, we believe, a validating recognition of the novelty and usefulness of this new approach to immunotherapy."

Anosys has exclusively licensed U.S. Patent No. 6,685,911 from the Institut National de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale (INSERM, France), the Gustave-Roussy Institute (France) and the Curie Institute (France). The inventors on the patent are Sebastian Amigorena, Doctor at the Curie Institute and Laurence Zitvogel, Professor at Gustave-Roussy.

Exosome Programs

Tumor cells often have unique molecular markers, known as antigens, which distinguish them from other cells.

The immune system is able to recognize tumor antigens through the activity of professional antigen-presenting cells (APCs). Specifically, APCs package tumor antigens into small, acellular, membrane-bound vesicles, known as exosomes, which contain molecules known to be important to both adaptive and innate immune responses.

Exosomes can activate other APCs, in part through the presentation of MHC molecule-Antigen complexes. These APCs in turn activate T cells to kill tumor cells. In this way, exosomes are believed to function as intercellular transport devices that amplify the message to destroy cancer cells. Furthermore, exosomes can also activate natural killer (NK) cells, a subtype of immune cells that plays an important role in innate immunity. Therefore, exosomes work by enhancing both adaptive (cellular) and innate immune responses to fight with tumors.