Oxford BioDynamics PLC Targets Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in Asia (8725H)

TIDMOBD

RNS Number : 8725H

Oxford BioDynamics PLC

13 June 2017

13 June 2017

Oxford BioDynamics Plc

("OBD" or the "Company" and, together with its subsidiaries, the "Group")

Oxford BioDynamics targets Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in Asia

Oxford BioDynamics Plc ("OBD" or the "Company"), a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of epigenetic biomarkers based on regulatory genome architecture, for use within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry, is to expand its Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) biomarker programme into South East Asia.

Since receiving funding through an Innovate UK grant in December 2014, OBD has been leading a consortium, including the Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences (University of Oxford), with the aim to discover and validate epigenetic signatures in patients with ALS to be used as diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, using its proprietary EpiSwitch(TM) platform.

Innovate UK has agreed to expand the project to utilise OBD's Malaysian based ALS network consisting of 30 hospitals, established by OBD's wholly owned Malaysian subsidiary ("OBDM"), to collect a South East Asian sample cohort to complement the European cohort being supplied by the Nuffield departments MND clinic.

The new sample cohort will be used to assess the performance and adapt the EpiSwitch(TM) assay to a South East Asian cohort with multiple ethnic backgrounds. This expansion opens up an additional market for OBD and will provide a greater understanding of the effects of ethnicity on accurate biomarker stratification of ALS patients across ethnic groups. The project is due to be completed by the end of 2017.

OBD's award-winning, proprietary technology platform, EpiSwitch(TM) aims to accelerate the drug discovery and development process, improve the success rate of therapeutic product development and take advantage of the increasing importance of personalised medicine.

Christian Hoyer Millar, Chief Executive Officer of Oxford BioDynamics, said:

"We are delighted to expand the OBD ALS programme, which started with NEALS and Massachusetts General Hospital and received the important support of Innovate UK, into South East Asia. We now have the opportunity to utilise non-invasive EpiSwitch(TM) biomarkers well attuned to local Asian ethnic specificities. With our technology, we are building solutions for quick and effective diagnosis and prognosis of ALS patients and in the longer term, we are aiming to provide early symptomatic and pre-symptomatic diagnosis.

"Regarding prognostic ALS stratification, we are receiving strong support for our programme from all parties involved and see its primary application as improving patient care and de-risking novel ALS therapeutic development."

For further details contact:

 
 Oxford BioDynamics Plc         [phone] 
 Christian Hoyer Millar, 
  CEO 
 Katie Long, CFO 
 
 Stifel Nicolaus Europe 
  Limited                       [phone] 
 Nominated Advisor and 
  Broker 
 David Arch 
 Jonathan Senior 
 Peter Lees 
 Ben Maddison 
 
 Shore Capital                  [phone] 
 Joint Broker 
 Bidhi Bhoma 
 Edward Mansfield 
 
 FTI Consulting                 [phone] 
 Financial Public Relations 
  Advisor 
 Julia Phillips 
 Brett Pollard 
 Natalie Garland-Collins 
 

Notes for Editors

About Oxford BioDynamics Plc

Oxford BioDynamics Plc (AIM: OBD) ("Oxford BioDynamics") is a revenue--generating biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of epigenetic biomarkers for use within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry.

The Company's award-winning, proprietary technology platform, EpiSwitch(TM), aims to accelerate the drug discovery and development process, improve the success rate of therapeutic product development and take advantage of the increasing importance of personalised medicine.

In particular, EpiSwitch(TM) can reduce time to market, failure rates and the costs at every stage of drug discovery. Additionally, the technology provides significant insights into disease mechanisms for drug discovery and product re--positioning programmes, and enables the personalisation of therapeutics for patients in the context of challenging pricing environments where improved clinical outcomes are critical.

Oxford BioDynamics is headquartered in the UK, and listed on the London Stock Exchange's AIM under the ticker "OBD". For more information please visit www.oxfordbiodynamics.com.

This information is provided by RNS

The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

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June 13, 2017 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)