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Avidis and Merial sign animal vaccine agreement
Merial will use Avidis
technology to develop new recombinant veterinary vaccines
Paris, November 30th, 2005 - Immunotherapeutics specialist, Avidis today announced that it has signed an agreement with Merial, the world's leading animal health company, in the field of veterinary vaccines. The agreements give Merial the right to use Avidis' aXent(TM) (an adjuvant-free immunisation technology) to develop new recombinant animal vaccines. The agreement covers the use of aXent(TM) for two infectious diseases with the possibility of acquiring exclusive rights through further license agreements. Merial will use Avidis' aXent(TM) to immunise without the use of adjuvants, hitherto necessary for administering a vaccine. It has already been shown to be effective with a variety of antigens in several species, using a variety of delivery methods. "The signing of this agreement is a tangible result of the work our scientists have carried out over the last year," said Avidis President, François Miceli. "After we shifted our strategic focus in 2004 to concentrate on immunotherapeutics, this agreement with Merial confirms that we have chosen the right strategy and gives us real encouragement to continue in this direction. 2006 will be a key year in the company's development, and we expect to conclude other deals and finalize the second phase of our repositioning before the end of the year." "We are happy that the agreement with Avidis is fully in line with our policy of innovation and the offer of new generation vaccines," said Jean-Christophe Audonnet, Director, Discovery research, vaccinomics and virology at Merial. About Avidis: www.avidis.fr Avidis aims to create immunotherapeutics through its unique protein engineering technology platform, aXent(TM).The company was founded in 2000 as a spin-off from the Medical Research Council, UK and Cambridge University, UK. Avidis' technology enables immunization without adjuvants and thus the creation of new vaccines and immunotherapeutics. About Merial: www.merial.com Merial is a world-leading, innovation-driven animal health company, providing a comprehensive range of products to enhance the health, well-being and performance of a wide range of animals. Merial employs approximately 5,000 people and operates in more than 150 countries worldwide. Its 2004 sales were in excess of $1.8 billion. Merial is a joint venture between Merck & Co., Inc. and sanofi-aventis. For more information, please contact: Andrew Lloyd & Associates Andrew Lloyd / Heidi Thompson Tel: +44 1273 675100 allo@ala.com / heidi@ala.com
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