Board changes

RNS Number : 9714V

Provexis PLC

12 April 2019

 

12 April 2019

Provexis plc

("Provexis" or the "Company")

Board changes

Provexis, the business that develops, licenses and sells the proprietary, scientifically-proven Fruitflow® heart-health functional food ingredient, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr Niamh O'Kennedy as an Executive Director of the Company, and as Chief Scientific Officer, with immediate effect.

Niamh is a research chemist, specialising in the field of natural products chemistry, who has been working with Provexis since 2000. Niamh's experience in isolating and characterising plant-derived compounds and understanding the roles these play in complex biological systems has been pivotal in the development of Provexis' lead product, Fruitflow®, and the health claim for Fruitflow® which was adopted by the European Food Safety Authority ('EFSA').

In conjunction with Niamh's appointment, Ian Ford's role has been expanded to Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer and Dawson Buck's role has changed from Executive Chairman to Non-executive Chairman. These changes, which are effective immediately, have taken place to reflect the revised board composition and roles of the directors, and they will result in a net reduction to the total cash remuneration payable to these three individuals.

The Company's financial year ended on 31 March 2019 and the board expects to provide an update on trading before the end of the current quarter to 30 June 2019.

The following information is provided in accordance with rule 17 and paragraph (g) of Schedule Two of the AIM Rules for Companies:

Dr Niamh Ann O'Kennedy BSc MSc PhD, an Irish national, is aged 45 and does not hold any directorships or partnerships currently and has not held any within the last five years. Niamh holds an honorary position at The University of Aberdeen.

Niamh holds options over 13,000,000 ordinary shares of 0.1p each, equivalent to 0.66 per cent. of the Company's issued share capital.

Dawson Buck, Non-executive Chairman of Provexis, commented:

'I am delighted that Niamh is joining the board as an executive director.

The Company remains well placed to maximise the numerous commercial opportunities which the Company and DSM have been pursuing for Fruitflow®, to include the Company's planned collaboration with By-health in the vast Chinese market, and Niamh is expected to play an important role for the business as these opportunities are progressed.'

For further information please contact:

Provexis plc Dawson Buck, Chairman Ian Ford, CFO & COO	Tel:         [phone]               [e-mail]
Allenby Capital Limited Nick Naylor / Liz Kirchner	Tel:         [phone]

Notes for editors

About Provexis plc

AIM-listed Provexis is focused on the development, licensing and sales of its proprietary, scientifically-proven Fruitflow® heart-health functional food ingredient.

In May 2009, the Company's Fruitflow® technology was the first to be substantiated by the European Food Safety Authority ('EFSA') under the then new Article 13(5) for proprietary and emerging science. In December 2009 the European Commission authorised the health claim 'Helps maintain normal platelet aggregation, which contributes to healthy blood flow', which was the first wording to be authorised under Article 13(5).

In June 2010 it was announced that the Company had entered into a long-term Alliance Agreement with DSM Nutritional Products to commercialise Fruitflow®, through sales as an ingredient to brand owners in the food, beverage and dietary supplement categories. The Alliance is seeing the partners collaborate to develop Fruitflow® in all major global markets.

More than 90 regional consumer healthcare brands have now been launched by direct customers of DSM, and a number of further regional brands have been launched through DSM's distributor channels.

The Company and DSM have seen an encouraging increase in brand awareness and customer interest in Fruitflow® over the last three years, with an increasing number of further commercial projects being initiated with prospective customers, including some prospective customers which are part of global businesses.

In December 2018 the Company announced that the total projected annual sales value of the prospective sales pipeline for Fruitflow then stood at a substantial multiple of existing annual sales.

In June 2016 the Company launched a high quality dietary supplement product containing Fruitflow® and Omega-3 which is being sold from a separate, dedicated website www.fruitflowplus.com on a mail order basis. The product is also available to purchase from Amazon.co.uk, and from more than 660 Holland & Barrett stores across the UK and Ireland, together with Holland & Barrett Online.

Fruitflow®+ Omega-3 will be promoted at the MegsMenopause conference in London on 18 May 2019.

In December 2016 the Company announced that the pilot study conducted as part of the Company's collaboration agreement with the University of Oslo for blood pressure regulation indicated that a 150mg dose of Fruitflow® in powder format significantly lowered the average 24-hour systolic blood pressure compared to placebo. When the monitoring time was split into waking and sleeping periods, both systolic and diastolic blood pressure were significantly lower after 150mg Fruitflow® treatment than after placebo treatment during the waking period; systolic pressure was also significantly lower during the sleeping period.

In September 2017 the results from the blood pressure collaboration were published in the International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, and the study is available to view on the Company's website at: www.provexis.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/IJFSN-Fruitflow-blood-pressure-study-Sep-17.pdf

In December 2017 the Company announced the filing of a patent application relating to the use of Fruitflow® in protecting against the adverse effects of air pollution on the body's cardiovascular system. Recent laboratory work has shown that Fruitflow® can reduce the platelet activation caused by airborne particulate matter, such as that from diesel emissions, by approximately one third. The beneficial effects of this reduction can be observed in laboratory models representing healthy subjects as well as in models representing subjects with an underlying cardiovascular problem.

The Company is working with DSM and By-health Co., Ltd, a £3.5bn listed Chinese dietary supplement business, to support the planned launch of some Fruitflow® based products in the Chinese market.

In December 2018 the Company confirmed that the planned launch by By-health of a number of Fruitflow® based products in the Chinese market, with potentially substantial volumes, is progressing well, with activities driven at present by the need to obtain 'blue cap' health claim status for Fruitflow® as a dietary supplement with the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR).

Clinical studies conducted in China are typically required to obtain blue cap health claim status, and a significant investment in six separate studies, in support of the Fruitflow® based products which By-health plans to launch in China, is being undertaken at By-health's expense.

Two studies have been successfully completed in China, one study is currently ongoing at a Chinese clinical site and three further planned human studies in 2019 have been confirmed by By-health.

The two completed studies (a human study and an animal study) showed excellent results in use for Fruitflow®.

By-health has launched a Fruitflow® sports nutrition product in China under its GymMax brand, for the exclusive use of Chinese national athletes.

In April 2017 the Company announced it had entered into a memorandum of understanding with By-health, intended to result in a research and collaboration agreement with By-health for Fruitflow® focussing on By-health's research programme into the development of new products that contribute to cardiovascular health, particularly in the field of blood pressure regulation.

The proposed research and collaboration agreement is intended to include a clinical trial which will be conducted in China, with the bulk of the research programme to be completed in 2019. This will effectively be By-health's seventh clinical study for Fruitflow®.

It is envisaged that the Company will provide scientific and technical support for Fruitflow® to By-health throughout the collaboration, with further potential research projects for Fruitflow® between the Company and By-health now under active discussion.

There are more than 230m people in China who are currently thought to have cardiovascular disease, and a significant increase in cardiovascular events is expected in China over the course of the next decade based on population aging and growth alone (source: World Health Organisation - Cardiovascular diseases, China). China is now the world's second-largest pharmaceuticals market, measured by how much patients and the state spend on drugs (source: health-care information company IQVIA). The Company believes that Fruitflow® has the potential to play an important role in the Chinese cardiovascular health market.

The Company is progressing the formulation and launch of a Fruitflow®+ nitrates dietary supplement product, which will be supported by the Company's strong patent position in this area, with the involvement now of third-party manufacturers and with some interest already generated from brand owners. The product is expected to have anti-inflammatory and circulation benefits for athletes seeking to recover after exercise, properties which would also be potentially beneficial to a wide range of other consumers to include people who are less active and people who are suffering from the symptoms of basic ageing.

Further interest in the role of Fruitflow® in exercise was generated by Team Sunweb Pro Cycling's use of Fruitflow® in the 2018 Tour de France.

Provexis was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Reading, Berkshire.

Provexis shares are traded on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PXS.

For further information, please visit www.provexis.com and www.fruitflowplus.com.

 

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