The Netherlands Invest ¤18.4 Million to Develop Better Vaccines to
Fight Raging TB Pandemic
Aeras to Partner with Crucell, KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation and other
Top Dutch Scientific Organisations
(The Netherlands, Nov. 3, 2006) As extreme forms of drug resistant
tuberculosis threaten to make the TB pandemic even worse, Dutch
funding and scientific expertise are playing a critical role in the
development of new, more effective TB vaccines.
The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs (DGIS) made an ¤18.4 million,
four-year investment in Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation, a Product
Development Partnership (PDP) that is collaborating with Crucell
N.V., KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, Netherlands Cancer Institute
(NKI-AVI) and other Dutch organizations to develop new TB vaccines.
"Vaccines have wiped out smallpox and nearly eliminated polio. A
vaccine for TB could reverse the tide of the TB pandemic and save
millions of lives," said Dr. Jerald Sadoff, President and CEO of
Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation. "The Netherlands has shown great
global leadership to develop new solutions to global health problems
that burden developing countries. DGIS' strong financial support for
Aeras' work and the Netherlands' first-rate scientific expertise will
both speed development of a new vaccine and help mobilize commitments
from other donor countries."
TB kills nearly 2 million people a year, TB/HIV co-infection is
worsening the pandemic, and recently-discovered extremely drug
resistant TB (XDR-B), is on the rise, particularly in Eastern Europe
and countries on the Baltic Sea. Today's TB vaccine is more than 85
years old, provides only marginal protection for infants and provides
very little, if any, protection beyond childhood. Aeras' goal is to
develop new, safe and effective vaccine regimens that prevent TB in
children, adolescents and adults, targeted for licensure in 7-10
years.
The Netherlands is taking a leading role in the battle against TB,
both in terms of investment and in the knowledge and expertise in TB
control. DGIS is also investing ¤12 million to develop new TB drugs
and diagnostics, the current versions of which are also insufficient
to combat the growing TB pandemic. Together, DGIS' ¤30.4 million
investment is the single largest contribution ever by any country for
the development of new tools against the global TB pandemic. It is
also the single largest grant Aeras has received from any country
government.
"This initiative is a crucial step forwards in the continued
development of our vaccine that is currently in Phase I clinical
trials," commented Dr. Jaap Goudsmit, CSO of Crucell. "It is
wonderful that the Netherlands is taking the lead in this battle
against this truly devastating disease."
"These investments show that the Dutch government not only talks
about stopping TB, it is doing something about it," said Dr. Martien
Borgdorff, Executive Director of KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation.
"Working with the Aeras, NKI-AVL will provide a full characterization
of Aeras' recombinant BCG, which escapes from the "endosome," thus
providing a considerable support to the ultimate success of this new
TB vaccine candidate," said Peter Peters, Professor of Structural
Biology at NKI-AVL.
Aeras is pursuing a "prime-boost" strategy in which an improved TB
vaccine (BCG), the prime, will be given initially, and another type
of vaccine, the boost, will be given at a specified period of time
after the prime vaccination. Aeras' Dutch partners include:
* Crucell N.V., a leading biotechnology and vaccine
developer, which, in partnership with Aeras, is developing Aeras
402/Crucell Adenovirus35 TB vaccine. Last week, this vaccine went
into clinical trials, marking the first time the world's most
advanced adenovector technology has been used in humans.
* KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation, one of the world's most
influential TB research, training, and policy organizations, which
will continue to provide epidemiological support at Aeras' South
Africa trial site and help establish new TB vaccine clinical trial
sites in other countries.
* Netherlands Cancer Institute (NKI), a leading cancer
research organization, which has discovered a promising new method
of identifying the location of TB and BCG organisms inside the cell
that could significantly impact development of crucial TB vaccine
candidates.
DGIS made the investment as part of a program to support
"Public-Private Partnerships for research into and the development of
medicines, vaccines and diagnostic aids in the domain of AIDS,
tuberculosis and malaria."
About the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the channel through which the
Dutch Government communicates with foreign governments and
international organisations. It coordinates and carries out Dutch
foreign policy. Through its Directorate General for International
Development Cooperation (DGIS) it channels and coordinates
development aid.
The Ministry has two halves: its headquarters in The Hague and its
missions abroad (embassies, consulates, and permanent
representations). The five key objectives of Dutch foreign policy
are:
* to promote the international order;
* to promote international peace, security and stability;
* to promote European integration;
* to promote sustainable poverty reduction;
* to maintain and promote bilateral relations.
About Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation
The Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation is a PDP leading an
international effort to develop new and more effective tuberculosis
(TB) vaccines for the world, and ensure their availability to all who
need them as rapidly as possible. Aeras develops candidate vaccines
in its own laboratory and actively pursues and helps fund joint
development activities with other leading TB vaccine developers
around the world. Aeras' goal is to develop, test, characterize,
license, manufacture and distribute at least one new TB vaccine
within 7-10 years. Aeras is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation and has received funding from the US Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention and the Government of Denmark, as well as the
Netherlands. For more information please visit www.aeras.org
About Crucell
Crucell N.V. (Euronext, NASDAQ: CRXL; Swiss Exchange: CRX) is a
biotechnology company focused on research, development and worldwide
marketing of vaccines and antibodies that prevent and treat
infectious diseases. Its vaccines are sold in public and private
markets worldwide. Crucell's core portfolio includes a vaccine
against hepatitis B, a fully-liquid vaccine against five important
childhood diseases, and a virosome-adjuvanted vaccine against
influenza. Crucell also markets travel vaccines, such as the only
oral anti-typhoid vaccine and the only aluminum-free hepatitis A
vaccine on the market. The Company has a broad development pipeline,
with several Crucell products based on its unique PER.C6® production
technology. The Company licenses this and other technologies to the
biopharmaceutical industry. Important partners and licensees include
DSM Biologics, sanofi aventis, GSK and Merck & Co. Crucell is
headquartered in Leiden (the Netherlands), with subsidiaries in
Switzerland, Spain, Italy, Korea and the US. The Company employs
about 900 people. For more information, please visit www.crucell.com.
About KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation
KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation is a medical development organization
that has been fighting tuberculosis for 103 years. We have developed
a considerable knowledge and expertise base in the course of the
years, building upon the successful combating of tuberculosis in the
Netherlands. We see it as our mission to share this knowledge and
expertise with other countries. www.kncvtbc.nl
The Netherlands Cancer Institute - Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Ziekenhuis
The Netherlands Cancer Institute is an integrated cancer centre with
an eight-floor research building (housing 30 groups). The research
facility with around 500 FTE is dedicated to basic, translational and
clinical research. The NKI-AVL has excellent facilities for advanced
cell biology, including state of the art transgenic mouse facility,
electron microscopy, confocal microscopy, live-cell imaging, DNA
microarray technology, biophysics and structural biology. In general
lines are short and the research environment is very interactive.
* Crucell Forward-looking statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve
inherent risks and uncertainties. We have identified certain
important factors that may cause actual results to differ materially
from those contained in such forward-looking statements. For
information relating to these factors please refer to our Form 20-F,
as filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on July 6,
2006, and the section entitled "Risk Factors". The Company prepares
its financial statements under generally accepted accounting
principles in the United States (US GAAP) and Europe (IFRS).
Contact:
The Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Kees-Jaap Ouwerkerk,
+31-(0) 70-348-6645
+31-(0) 65-250-3255
Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation
Bruce Kirschenbaum
+44 7894 927614
Bkirschenbaum@aeras.org
Crucell N.V.
Paul Vermeij
Director Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
Tel. +31-(0)71-524 8718
p.vermeij@crucell.com
KNCV Tuberculosis Foundation
Monica Smits
+31.(0)70.4167.266
smitsm@kncvtbc.nl
Netherlands Cancer Institute
Frederique Melman
+31-(0)20 - 512 9111
f.melman@NKI.nl
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