Investment in Intensity Therapeutics Inc

RNS Number : 3387B

Kuala Innovations Limited

06 October 2015

 



6 October 2015

Kuala Innovations Limited

("Kuala" or the "Company")

Acquisition of 3.5% interest in cancer immunotherapy company Intensity Therapeutics, Inc.

The Board of Kuala Innovations Limited ("Kuala" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has subscribed for a 3.5 per cent. interest in Delaware incorporated private company Intensity Therapeutics, Inc. ("Intensity Therapeutics").

The Company has subscribed for 250,000 Preferred Series A Shares of Intensity Therapeutics ("Subscription Shares") at a price of US$2.00 per Subscription Share, for total cash consideration of US$500,000. 

Intensity Therapeutics is currently under-going a "Series A Fundraising" to raise approximately US$5 million.  It is anticipated that, on completion of the Series A Funding round Intensity Therapeutics will have a post-money market capitalisation of approximately US$19.0 million (based on US$2.00 per share).

Intensity Therapeutics, Inc.

Intensity Therapeutics is a biotechnology company focused on cancer immunotherapy.  Intensity's novel technology has the potential to transform the lives of patients with cancer.

Intensity's approach allows for the administration of drugs directly into cancerous tumours.   This method could create high quality antigens from the patients' own attenuated (killed) tumours to promote immune activation.  The immune system, once trained against the patient's own cancer, can then could seek and attack the remaining cancer cells throughout the body to potentially put the patient into remission and prevent the cancer's recurrence. 

Intensity's lead product INT230-6 has demonstrated remarkable activity in multiple animal cancer models.   The Company was awarded a Collaborative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the US National Cancer Institute of the American National Institute of Health to better characterize the mechanism of this technology.   The National Cancer Institute has reproduced and confirmed Intensity's findings.  

Currently, early detection coupled with surgery and chemotherapy is the most effective treatment against cancer.  However, for late-stage cancer patients, combinations of chemotherapy or targeted therapy, immunotherapy ablation or radiation are less effective.  Current therapies also require administration directly into the bloodstream (systemically) whereby the drug circulates throughout the body damaging healthy tissue.  Often, due to side effects on normal tissue, the doses are limited and only a fraction of the drug reaches the tumour with even less of the drug getting into the actual cancer cells.  Intensity's localized administration approach should lead to reduced systemic exposure significantly reducing toxicity.  The activation of the immune system against the cancer allows for the system killing power to attack the untreated tumors and invisible metastases.

Intensity has a strong management team with considerable experience in the field of cancer immunotherapy. The Company is being led by founder Lewis Bender who is currently President and Chief Executive Officer.  Mr. Bender has over 20 years of biotechnology and pharmaceutical executive management experience.  Prior to founding Intensity, Mr. Bender was the CEO of the publically traded personalized medicine firm, Interleukin Genetics, Inc. (ILIU).  Mr. Bender is joined by Ian Walters, MD as Chief Medical Officer who is a veteran oncology drug developer, formerly from Bristol-Myers Squibb, where he managed physicians overseeing the international development of several oncology compounds. 

Commenting on the Intensity Subscription, Kuala Co-Chairman Mr Jim Mellon noted:

"The landscape of cancer therapies is changing rapidly thanks to major advances in our understanding of human biology.  The Board of Kuala believe that harnessing the power of patients' immune system is an important step in treatments that are both effective and durable and could ultimately lead to the holy grail of a cure for cancer. Intensity is at the forefront of this innovation and we are pleased to work with Lewis Bender, CEO and Ian Walters, CMO in support of their efforts to bring better treatment options to cancer patients. Intensity's pre-clinical results are extremely encouraging.   Should these results translate into humans in phase one clinical trials, Intensity could be on the verge of a blockbuster treatment in cancer therapy."

For the 6 months ended 30 June 2015 Intensity Therapeutics made an operating loss of US$608,468.  As at 30 June 2015 Intensity Therapeutics had total assets of US$1,291,036.

For further information please visit www.kualainnovations.com or contact:

Kuala Innovations Limited Elysium Fund Management Limited	Tel:   Tel: [phone]
Beaumont Cornish Limited (Nomad) James Biddle / Michael Cornish	Tel:  [phone]
Peterhouse Corporate Finance Limited (Broker) Guy Miller / Lucy Williams	Tel:   [phone]

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT

The AIM Market of London Stock Exchange plc does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, statements regarding potential values, the future plans and objectives of Kuala Innovations Limited. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, achievable or recognizable in the near term.

Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements are based on the estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. Kuala Innovations Limited assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements should circumstances or management's estimates or opinions change.

 

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