OXFORD BIOMEDICA

Today at an International Conference on vaccine strategies, held at Schloss-Elmau in Germany, Dr. Miles Carroll of Oxford BioMedica presented preclinical efficacy data from the Company's anti-tumour vaccine programme. The data show that Oxford BioMedica's gene-based tumour vaccine product, TroVaX^TM, is able to protect mice from highly invasive tumours and so may be useful in the treatment of primary and secondary tumours in man and other animals.

TroVaX^TM makes use of a tumour associated antigen (TAA), a protein that is found only on tumour cells, to stimulate the body's immune system to react against the tumour cells. The antibodies and cells of the immune system then seek out both primary and secondary tumours and destroy them. The key to the technology is using the correct TAA and presenting the TAA to the immune system in an optimal way. Achieving both of these goals has lead to the results presented today in Germany.

Commenting on the results Prof. Alan Kingsman, Chief Executive said 'We have been working quietly on this project since the Company started. It has now delivered excellent preclinical data that should enable us to move rapidly to clinical trials for the treatment of cancer in man and in companion animals. Both areas represent substantial markets and important commercial opportunities for BioMedica. We are already in discussion with four companies concerning possible collaborations in this field. It is important to remember, however, that preclinical results do not necessarily translate into favourable clinical results and so the real significance of these data can only be evaluated in a rigorous clinical setting.'

The Company's lead anti-cancer candidate product is MetXia-P450^TM. It is designed to enhance the efficacy of the chemotherapeutic drug, cyclophosphamide, and clinical data for the use of this product in breast cancer is expected towards the end of the year. 'The vaccine could be used alongside MetXia-P450^TM and could produce a synergistic effect. These two products are part of a multi-faceted approach that the Company is taking to develop effective therapies for a number of solid tumours' added Alan Kingsman.

1. Oxford BioMedica, established in 1995, specialises in the development and application of gene-based therapeutics using advanced gene delivery technologies for the treatment of disease in the areas of Oncology, Viral Infection, Neurobiology and Genetic Deficiency. Oxford BioMedica plc was floated on the UK Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange in December 1996.