Oxford BioMedica soars on merger talks

Although the board of Oxford BioMedica confirmed that the discussions were taking place in a recent statement, it also stressed that these discussions are at an early stage and may or may not lead to an offer for the company.

Oxford BioMedica specializes in the development of novel gene-based therapeutics with a focus on oncology and neurotherapy. The company was established in 1995 as a spin-out from Oxford University, and is listed on the London Stock Exchange.

In addition to its technical expertise in gene delivery, Oxford BioMedica has in-house clinical, regulatory and manufacturing know-how. The development pipeline includes two novel anticancer products in clinical trials, two neurotherapy products in advanced preclinical development for Parkinson’s disease and retinopathy, and three further preclinical neurotherapy products.

The company has established a neurotherapy pipeline of product candidates based on its LentiVector technology, which includes ProSavin for Parkinson’s disease, RetinoStat for retinopathy, MoNuDin for motor neuron disease, SMN1-G for spinal muscular atrophy and Innurex for nerve repair.

Current licensees of the LentiVector technology for drug discovery and transgenic applications include Merck & Co and Viragen. Earlier this year, the company announced that it had entered into an agreement to license the technology to Biogen Idec for use in research activities.