CO-DEVELOPMENT DEAL

Oxford, UK, 24 September 2008 - Summit Corporation plc (AIM: SUMM), the leading UK biotechnology company, announces it has entered into a co-development agreement for its clinical candidate SMT D001 with Orient Pharma ("Orient"), the R&D and manufacturing subsidiary of Taiwan-based Orient Europharma Co. Ltd.  SMT D001 is in a Phase II clinical development programme as a treatment for sialorrhoea or excessive drooling, a non-motor symptom of Parkinson's disease (PD) and other neurological disorders.  A Phase I study indicated that SMT D001 reduces saliva production by up to 40%.

 

Under the terms of the agreement, Orient will fund the development of a novel buccal formulation of SMT D001 using its proprietary drug delivery technology at a new FDA-approved manufacturing plant in Taiwan.

 

Summit retains exclusive development and commercialisation rights to the new formulation of SMT D001 in North America, Europe and the rest of the world, where it will continue seek partners to continue the development and commercialisation of SMT D001. Orient gains exclusive clinical development and commercialisation rights to the product in Asia Pacific and Australasia with Summit having access to the formulation and clinical trial data produced by Orient.  In addition, Orient will only be responsible for the costs associated with the development, manufacture and distribution of SMT D001 within its respective territories.

 

Importantly, the buccal formulation will help deliver SMT D001 directly to the affected areas in patients with the aim of increasing its efficacy in reducing excessive drooling and improving patient compliance.  In addition, the development work will extend the intellectual property protection around this programme to further enhance its commercial value.  It is expected that the novel formulation will be used in all future clinical trials which will conform to FDA guidelines and as a result, Summit has suspended recruitment in its on-going oral Phase II clinical trial.

 

Steven Lee, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Summit said, "We are pleased to be working with Orient in the development of SMT D001, a company with a proven track record of developing approved drugs and an expertise in the field of drug delivery technology and formulation. This co-development deal with Orient enables us to retain valuable commercial rights to this product for major world territories, and to exploit the FDA-standard clinical results generated by Orient in future licensing opportunities, ensuring no future costs to Summit.

 

"For Summit, this agreement highlights the continued progress we are making in fulfilling our strategy of signing early stage deals from our pipeline of clinical and preclinical assets and I expect further developments in the coming months."

- ENDS -

Summit plc
Steven Lee, PhD, Chief Executive Officer
Richard Pye, PhD, Investor Relations

Tel: +44 (0)1235 443951; +44 (0)7825 313476

Citigate Dewe Rogerson
Mark Swallow, PhD / David Dible / Emma Palmer Foster

Tel: +44 (0)207 638 9571

Panmure Gordon
Andrew Burnett / Rakesh Sharma (Corporate Finance)
Ashton Clanfield (Corporate Broking)

Tel: +44 (0)207 459 3600

Summit plc is a leading UK biotechnology company with a broad preclinical and clinical pipeline, two world-leading technology platforms and an innovative business model that is expected to generate sustainable value for investors. 

Summit is developing many drug programmes that target unmet medical needs from which it intends to generate value by out-licensing attractive late preclinical or early clinical stage programmes in return for upfront, milestone and royalty payments. Summit uses its scientific expertise to target orphan indications, neuro-disorders and infectious diseases. 

Summit's drug pipeline is supported by its world leadership in two innovative technology platforms: carbohydrate chemistry and zebrafish biology. These platforms support existing programmes and also will be the source of future programmes to refuel Summit's drug pipeline.  These platform technologies also form the basis of the Company's revenue generating service business. 

The company listed on the alternative investment market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange in October 2004 - symbol: SUMM.  Further information about the company is available at www.summitplc.com.

Founded in 1982, Orient Europharma (OEP) has five divisions: Pharma, Nutricare, Dermo-Cosmetics, Oncology and Consumer Healthcare. The company's leading products include hyaluronic acid injections and Karihome Goat's Milk for infants and toddlers. Beginning in 1993, OEP established subsidiaries in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines. It is now expanding into mainland China. In 2003, the company listed on Taiwan's OTC market (stock code: 4120). For more information, please visit http://www.oep.com.tw/.

In 2007, OEP's net sales grew by 17.7 percent to NT$2.6 billion, while after-tax net profits increased over 20 percent to NT$160 million with an EPS of NT$3.15. Total net sales reached NT$3.8 billion - an increase of 21.7 percent compared with NT$2.53 billion in 2006. Total sales in the first quarter of 2008 rose to a new high of NT$762 million -- a 19.4 percent year-on-year (YoY) over 2007. The net sales in April amounted to NT$273 million. OEP was named an "A+ company"- the highest marks given by the Taiwan Stock Exchange's Information Transparency and Disclosure Ranking in 2007.