SAN DIEGO, April 25, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Marshall Edwards, Inc. (Nasdaq: MSHL), an
oncology company focused on the clinical development of novel
therapeutics targeting cancer metabolism, announced today that the
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued Patent No. 8,163,795
covering the Company's lead drug candidate ME-143 for use in
treating cancer. The patent is expected to provide protection until
September 2025.
The Company also announced that it has received notices of
allowance from the Japanese Patent Office for two patents that
cover the ME-143 and ME-344 compositions of matter, respectively,
and their use in treating cancer.
"This key U.S. patent for ME-143 follows on the heels of a
related patent for ME-344 as well as a composition patent for both
compounds, solidifying the intellectual property position
surrounding our two lead oncology drug candidates," said
Daniel P. Gold, Ph.D., President and
Chief Executive Officer of Marshall
Edwards. "As we prepare for our upcoming Phase II clinical
trials, we believe our strong patent estate will help to facilitate
our partnering efforts both in the U.S. and in high growth markets
abroad."
Marshall Edwards owns exclusive
worldwide rights to all of its drug candidates, including ME-143
and ME-344. The Company's intellectual property portfolio now
includes 15 issued U.S. patents, at least 12 additional U.S. patent
applications, and more than 70 issued foreign patents and 50
foreign patent applications.
About Marshall Edwards
Marshall Edwards, Inc. (Nasdaq:
MSHL) is a San Diego-based
oncology company focused on the clinical development of novel
therapeutics targeting cancer metabolism. The Company's lead drug
candidates, ME-143 and ME-344, have been shown in laboratory
studies to interact with specific enzyme targets resulting in
inhibition of tumor cell metabolism, a function critical for cancer
cell survival. Marshall Edwards
initiated a Phase I clinical trial of intravenous ME-143 in
patients with solid refractory tumors in September 2011 and plans to present safety and
pharmacokinetic data from the trial at the American Society of
Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting in June
2012. The Company received approval of its Investigational
New Drug application for ME-344 in April
2012 and is initiating a Phase I clinical trial of
intravenous ME-344 in patients with solid refractory tumors. For
more information, please visit www.marshalledwardsinc.com.
Under U.S. law, a new drug cannot be marketed until it has
been investigated in clinical trials and approved by the FDA as
being safe and effective for the intended use. Statements included
in this press release that are not historical in nature are
"forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe
harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. You should be aware that our actual results could differ
materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements,
which are based on management's current expectations and are
subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including, but not
limited to, our failure to successfully commercialize our product
candidates; costs and delays in the development and/or FDA
approval, or the failure to obtain such approval, of our product
candidates; uncertainties or differences in interpretation in
clinical trial results; our inability to maintain or enter into,
and the risks resulting from our dependence upon, collaboration or
contractual arrangements necessary for the development,
manufacture, commercialization, marketing, sales and distribution
of any products; competitive factors; our inability to protect our
patents or proprietary rights and obtain necessary rights to third
party patents and intellectual property to operate our business;
our inability to operate our business without infringing the
patents and proprietary rights of others; general economic
conditions; the failure of any products to gain market acceptance;
our inability to obtain any additional required financing;
technological changes; government regulation; changes in industry
practice; and one-time events. We do not intend to update any of
these factors or to publicly announce the results of any revisions
to these forward-looking statements.
SOURCE Marshall Edwards, Inc.