Oxford BioMedica (LSE: OXB) is a biopharmaceutical company specialising in the development of novel gene-based therapeutics with a focus on the areas of 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 anti-cancer 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 is underpinned by an extensive preclinical and research portfolio and over 80 patent families, which represents one of the broadest patent estates in the field.

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 licencees of the LentiVector technology for drug discovery and transgenic applications include Merck & Co and Viragen.

Oxford BioMedica’s LentiVector gene delivery technology, based on lentiviral vectors, is arguably the most potent system currently available for treating a range of diseases, particularly those of the central nervous system. Oxford BioMedica has shown that its lentiviral vectors are able to deliver genes with high efficiency to a variety of both dividing and non-dividing cells, including neurons in the brain.

Oxford BioMedica has three issued US patents and a European patent for its LentiVector technology. These include broad composition of matter claims and methods of production claims for lentiviral vector gene delivery systems of both human and non-human origin. The patents also cover derivatives of lentiviral vector systems that, unlike many versions of lentiviral vectors, have real clinical utility because of their safety. The Oxford BioMedica team was the first to construct lentiviral vectors that contain no viral genes at all, and which comprise the minimum number of viral components in the viral particles. It is this minimisation of the vectors that is the subject of these patents. This work was done using vectors based on HIV and Equine Infectious Anaemia Virus (EIAV), a horse virus that is not linked to any disease in humans.