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Novagali Pharma names
scientific advisory board
Development of innovative eye therapies will benefit from highly-focused
international academic expertise
Evry, France, April 27 2005 - Novagali Pharma, a biopharmaceutical
company developing innovative drug delivery systems principally in
ophthalmology, announces today the members of its Scientific Advisory Board. The
company based its choice on international academic excellence and has included
American, Japanese, Israeli and French experts working at the cutting edge of
ophthalmology and ocular delivery. The company expects the SAB members will give
an added boost to Novagali's research and development activities.
The seven members of the SAB are:
Professor Simon Benita (Israel): president of the SAB and cofounder of Novagali
Pharma, professor in the school of pharmacy, Jerusalem, specialist in drug
delivery, nanotechnologies and emulsion technology.
Professor Penny Asbell (USA): professor of ophthalmology at Mount Sinai
Hospital, New York, director of the cornea service and refractive surgery center
and specialist in dry eye and refractive surgery.
Professor Christophe Baudouin (France): professor of ophthalmology at the
Quinze-Vingt Hospital, Paris, associate director of the Inserm U598 laboratory
in the University of Paris V whose focus is therapeutic innovations in the
physiopathology of ocular disease, president of the Opthalmological Society of
Paris, specialist in dry eye, ocular allergies and glaucoma.
Doctor Francine Behar-Cohen (France): retinal surgeon in the department of
ophthalmology of Hôtel Dieu, Paris, director of the Inserm U598 laboratory in
the University of Paris V where the focus is on therapeutic innovations in the
physiopathology of ocular disease, specialized in retinal disease and retinal
surgery.
Professor Patrick Couvreur (France): professor of pharmacy at the university of
Paris XI - Faculty de pharmacy in Châtenay-Malabry, director of the CNRS unit
UMR 8612 (also Paris XI), a multidisciplinary research group, member of the
Board of Pharmaceutical Sciences International Federation of Pharmacy,
specializes in drug delivery and nanotechnologies.
Professor José-Alain Sahel (France): head of the ophthalmological service at the
Quinze-Vingt Hospital, Paris, director of the Inserm U592 laboratory researching
Cellular and molecular physiopathology or the retina (at the Saint-Antoine
Hospital), head of the "Institut de la Vision" project slated for 2007,
specialist in retinal diseases.
Professor Kazuo Tsubota (Japan): Professor and Chairperson, Department of
Ophthalmology, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo and Visiting Professor,
Department of Ophthalmology, Tokyo Dental College, Chiba, specializes in the
cornea, dry eye and refractive surgery.
Novagali Pharma is specialized in cationic emulsions and is developing new
therapeutic products for ophthalmic pathologies such as dry eye syndrome and
age-related macular degeneration (ARMD). Novagali's unique technology enables
the delivery of drugs into all segments of the eye - safely and with optimal
comfort for the patient. SAB members bring together complementary know-how in
ocular therapy and delivery, a winning combination for the company's future
success.
"We are especially pleased to welcome such prestigious scientists and clinicians
to our advisory board," said Jérôme Martinez, President and CEO of Novagali
Pharma. "They constitute a vital resource to help us define the best way forward
in R&D. Their scientific involvement confirms the development potential of
Novagali in ophthalmology and sends a clear signal of our intent to succeed on a
global scale."
"As founder of Novagali, I am delighted to be part of such a high-level
Scientific Advisory Board," said Professor Simon Benita, "As president of the
SAB, I am totally committed to helping this promising company. It is clear that
cationic emulsions open up tremendous opportunities for the treatment of front
and back of the eye diseases - areas in which all the SAB members' expertise
will clearly be useful."
About Novagali Pharma
http://www.novagali.com
Novagali Pharma, Evry, near Paris, develops innovative drug delivery
technologies focused on ophthalmology and oncology. Created in 2000, Novagali
already has a number of products in Phase I and II clinical trials. These
include ophthalmic emulsions to treat dry eye syndrome and orally administered
anti-cancer drugs. Since its creation, Novagali Pharma has raised close to EUR18
million from investors including 1.2.3. Multinova, Auriga Partners, CDC
Entreprises Innovation, Fonds de co-investissement J.E., Rothschild Investment
Partners, Siparex Ventures et Tech Invest.
The technology is based on cationic emulsions. The originality of this approach
lies in creating emulsion droplets with positive charges on their surface
(whereas these droplets usually have negative charges). Thanks to this, the
positive emulsion droplets are attracted to all biological membranes as the
latter are negatively charged. Novagali's nano-emulsion droplets are about 150
nanometers in size and allow the formulation of a wide range of molecules while
enhancing their absorption and effectiveness. This technology platform can be
applied in many delivery applications, including ocular, oral, injectable and
dermatological, and also across a variety of therapeutic areas.
--
Rejoice Itembu
ANDREW LLOYD & ASSOCIATES
www.ala.com
Brighton Business Centre
95 Ditchling Road
Brighton BN1 4ST
ENGLAND
Tel: +44-1273 675100
Fax: +44-1273 675400
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75014 Paris
FRANCE
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Fax: +33-1 56 54 07 01
Email address: rejoice@ala.com
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