Cobra awarded DTI Grant to develop Cobra's oral vaccine delivery platform

Keele, UK, 31 May 2007 – Cobra Biomanufacturing plc (AIM: CBF), the international manufacturer of biopharmaceuticals, today announces that a consortium led by Cobra has been awarded a £1.1m grant from the U.K. Department of Trade and Industry to evaluate the application of Cobra’s proprietary ORT-VAC vaccine technology. The consortium comprises researchers from the University of Cambridge and the Royal Holloway, University of London, under the direction of Professor Nigel Slater and Professor Simon Cutting.

Cobra’s proprietary ORT-VAC oral vaccine delivery system exploits the use of innocuous bacteria to deliver vaccines orally. Avoiding the need for needles in vaccination increases the ease of vaccine distribution and administration and greatly simplifies production technology. ORT-VAC is therefore ideally suited for the development of vaccines for developing countries and applications in the animal health sector. The funds awarded will be largely used to support pre-clinical experimentation in our collaborators laboratories.

In conjunction with the UK Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Porton Down, Cobra has already established the ORT-VAC concept in the course of research into oral vaccines against anthrax and plague.

David Thatcher, CEO of Cobra, commented:

“We are very pleased to have been awarded this grant which provides valuable third party endorsement and enables us to develop our vaccine platform cost effectively. The project targets the development of oral vaccines for bird influenza and HIV/AIDS”.

Professor Simon Cutting of the Royal Holloway, commented:

“Live bacterial vaccines offer huge benefits both to patients and vaccine manufacturers, and we are delighted to be working with Cobra to evaluate the use of Cobra’s ORT-VAC technology in creating oral vaccines for diseases where there are major unmet clinical needs.”

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For further information:

Cobra Biomanufacturing Plc
Tel: 44 (0) 1782 714 181
David Thatcher, Chief Executive

Buchanan Communications
Tel: 44 (0) 207 466 5000
Tim Anderson/Mark Court/Rebecca Dietrich

Northbank Communications
Gemma Price
Kathryn Robertson/Peter Colley
Tel: 44 (0) 20 7268 3240
Tel: 44 (0) 1260 296 5000

About Cobra Biomanufacturing Plc

Cobra Biomanufacturing Plc is a leading international manufacturer of biopharmaceuticals to the lifescience industry. Founded in 1992, Cobra provides innovative manufacturing solutions to the biopharmaceutical industry covering DNA, virus, cellular therapeutics and recombinant protein products. Cobra was the first company to develop GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) standard DNA manufacture in Europe, with specific expertise in DNA medicines. A range of unique, patented technologies, underpins this revenue generating business.

www.cobrabio.com

About ORT-VAC

ORT-VAC is a system for oral delivery of a vaccine that exploits the use of live bacteria that have been attenuated so they do not cause disease. The ORT-VAC strains are uniquely able to stably maintain hundreds of copies of circular DNA molecules called plasmids, which contain gene coding for the active principle of vaccines called antigens.

There is a significant advantage in replacing needles with an oral vaccine for improved safety and ease of delivery, particularly in developing countries. For more information see http://www.cobrabio.com/technologies/ORT_VAC.htm