Peakdale Molecular - News

PEAKDALE ANNOUNCES COLLABORATION TO COMMERCIALIZE METHATHESIS-BASED PRIVILEGED SCAFFOLDS WITH MATERIA INC.

Chapel-en-le-Frith, UK, 1st March 2007

PASADENA, CA. and CHAPEL-EN-LE-FRITH, UK. - (BusinessWire) - March 1, 2007. Materia, Inc. and Peakdale Molecular Ltd. announced today their collaboration to offer metathesis-based scaffolds for the pharmaceutical industry.

Under the agreement, Peakdale has acquired non-exclusive rights to practice Materia's metathesis intellectual property portfolio for the design, development, and sale of research quantities of the scaffolds. The partners will jointly identify target compounds, while Peakdale will be primarily responsible for the compounds' development, production, and initial distribution.

The collaborators will introduce two new series of privileged scaffolds by the end of 2007, with further series expected to be introduced in 2008. The initial series was selected by Dr. Ray Fisher (Peakdale's Commercial Director) because of its usefulness in exploring novel drug like space and its suitability to synthesis via metathesis.

"Peakdale has demonstrated both strong design and development capabilities as well as considerable insight into the scaffolds of interest to discovery chemists," stated Dr. Michael Giardello, Materia's Chief Executive. "We are pleased to partner with them to expand metathesis' application in the pharmaceutical industry."

Dr. Fisher added, "We believe that metathesis is becoming an important tool for drug discovery. Materia is our partner of choice as it is has the broadest metathesis intellectual property position and the active support of the pioneering Nobel Prize winning chemists."

Materia was founded in 1998 to commercialize olefin metathesis catalyst technology. This market-enabling, Nobel Prize winning, green chemical technology enables chemical compounds to be synthesized with greater efficiency, under less stringent reaction conditions, and with reduced by-products and hazardous waste. For more information, visit the Materia Website

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ARTICLE PLEASE CONTACT

Sarah Barratt
Marketing Executive
Peakdale Molecular Ltd
01298 816 700
sarah.barratt@peakdale.co.uk