Amarantus Receives Notices of Allowance from European Patent Office for MANF and CDNF in the Treatment of Retinal Disorders

SAN FRANCISCO, February 29, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Amarantus BioScience Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB: AMBS), a biotechnology company focused on developing products for Regenerative Medicine, Neurology and Orphan Diseases, today announced that has received an Intent to Grant a Patent notice from the European Patent Officer for the Mesencephalilc Astrocyte-derived Neurotrophic Factor (MANF) method of use patent application entitled "Method of Treatment for Retinal Disorders". Amarantus expects the patent to issue later in 2016, adding additional key elements to our strong barrier-to-entry strategy for this potentially breakthrough technology targeting rare ophthalmological disorders.

Recent key achievements in the MANF development program include:

• Receipt of orphan drug designation from the US FDA for the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa;
• Receipt of orphan drug designation from the US FDA for the treatment of retinal artery occlusion;
• Receipt of orphan drug designation from the EMA for the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa;
• Submission of request for rare pediatric disease designation in the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa;
• Initiated process development with Catalent for manufacturing MANF protein in support of future first-in-man clinical studies.

"We are excited to see the continued progress for the Company's intellectual property strategy to protect our innovative technology for ophthalmological disorders," said Gerald E. Commissiong, President & CEO of Amarantus. "MANF and CDNF define a unique family of proteins that act to protect cells and tissues from stress, via a mechanism that is of great interest to the scientific community. As a result of emerging scientific discoveries in the field, MANF's compelling biology, and solid progress on the regulatory front, we have begun to see a clear increase in business development interest around MANF."

In parallel, Amarantus has retained Wallachbeth Capital to evaluate strategic options for the MANF gene therapy program which may expand the potential areas for therapeutic application.

About Mesencephalic-Astrocyte-derived Neurotrophic Factor (MANF) 

MANF (mesencephalic-astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor) is believed to have broad potential because it is a naturally-occurring protein produced by the body for the purpose of reducing and preventing apoptosis (cell death) in response to stress from injury or disease, making it an attractive potential candidate for treating RP. By manufacturing MANF and administering it to the body, Amarantus is seeking to use a regenerative medicine approach to assist the body with higher quantities of MANF when needed. Amarantus is the front-runner and primary holder of intellectual property around MANF, and is initially focusing on the development of MANF-based protein therapeutics.

MANF's lead indication is RP, and additional indications including central retinal artery occlusion, Parkinson's disease, diabetes and Wolfram's syndrome are currently being evaluated. Further applications for MANF may include Alzheimer's disease, traumatic brain injury, myocardial infarction, antibiotic-induced ototoxicity and certain other rare orphan diseases currently being considered.

About Amarantus BioScience Holdings, Inc. 

Amarantus BioScience Holdings (AMBS) is a biotechnology company developing treatments and diagnostics for diseases in the areas of neurology, regenerative medicine and orphan diseases. AMBS' Therapeutics division has development rights to eltoprazine, a Phase 2b-ready small molecule indicated for Parkinson's disease levodopa-induced dyskinesia, adult ADHD and Alzheimer's aggression, and owns the intellectual property rights to a therapeutic protein known as mesencephalic-astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor (MANF) and is developing MANF-based products as treatments for brain and ophthalmic disorders. More recently, AMBS acquired the rights to the Engineered Skin Substitute program (ESS), a regenerative medicine-based approach for treating severe burns with full thickness autologous skin grown in tissue culture. ESS is entering Phase 2 clinical studies under a CRADA agreement with the US Army. AMBS' Diagnostics division owns the rights to MSPrecise^®, a proprietary next-generation DNA sequencing (NGS) assay for the identification of patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) at first clinical presentation, has an exclusive worldwide license to the Lymphocyte Proliferation test (LymPro Test^®) for Alzheimer's disease, which was developed by Prof. Thomas Arendt, Ph.D., from the University of Leipzig, and owns intellectual property for the diagnosis of Parkinson's disease (NuroPro). AMBS also owns the discovery of neurotrophic factors (PhenoGuard^™) that led to MANF's discovery.

For further information please visit http://www.Amarantus.com, or connect with the Company on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Google+.

Forward-Looking Statements 

Certain statements, other than purely historical information, including estimates, projections, statements relating to our business plans, objectives, and expected operating results, and the assumptions upon which those statements are based, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words "believes," "project," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "strategy," "plan," "may," "will," "would," "will be," "will continue," "will likely result," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties which may cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. Our ability to predict results or the actual effect of future plans or strategies is inherently uncertain. Factors which could have a material adverse effect on our operations and future prospects on a consolidated basis include, but are not limited to: changes in economic conditions, legislative/regulatory changes, availability of capital, interest rates, competition, and generally accepted accounting principles. These risks and uncertainties should also be considered in evaluating forward-looking statements and undue reliance should not be placed on such statements.

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SOURCE Amarantus BioScience Holdings, Inc.