Biovista Announces a Drug Repositioning Collaboration With Pfizer

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia, November 9, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Biovista announced today that it has entered into a pilot research collaboration agreement with Pfizer (Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE). The aim of the collaboration is to identify new indications for a number of undisclosed Pfizer development candidates, using Biovista's Clinical Outcome Search Space (COSS) technology.

Under the terms of the agreement, Biovista will collaborate with Pfizer's Indications Discovery Unit to identify up to three novel indications for each of the Pfizer candidates. The terms of the agreement include an upfront payment and success-based milestones.

"We seek to benefit from the collaboration with Biovista and their COSS technology to expand uses for our drugs and to help accelerate our clinical programs," said Don Frail, chief scientific officer of Pfizer's Indications Discovery Unit.

"Pfizer is an industry leader in terms of its drug repositioning efforts, supporting the vision that every drug may have potential beyond its initially developed uses," said Aris Persidis, President of Biovista. "Working with Pfizer on potential new indications may benefit expanded sets of patients with unmet medical needs, and is an opportunity to demonstrate the value of Biovista's COSS(TM) technology within the drug development workflow of bio-pharmaceutical companies," he added.

DISCLOSURE NOTICE: The information contained in this release is as of May 17, 2010. Pfizer assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements contained in this release as the result of new information or future events or developments.

This release contains forward-looking information about potential new uses for existing compounds that involves substantial risks and uncertainties. Such risks and uncertainties include, among other things, the uncertainties inherent in research and development; decisions by regulatory authorities regarding whether and when to approve any drug applications and supplemental drug applications for such new uses for existing compounds that may be filed for such compounds as well as their decisions regarding labeling and other matters that could affect their availability or commercial potential of such new uses for existing compounds; and competitive developments. A further description of risks and uncertainties can be found in Pfizer's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 and in its reports on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K.

About Biovista:

Biovista is a privately held biotechnology company that finds novel uses for existing drugs, and profiles their side effects using their mechanism of action. Biovista is developing its own drug pipeline in multiple indications and is collaborating with the FDA on the prediction of adverse events, as well as with biopharmaceutical companies on indication expansion and de-risking of their portfolios (http://www.biovista.com).

    For further information please contact:

    Aris Persidis
    Biovista, Inc.
    [email protected]
    +1-434-242-6514

SOURCE Biovista