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02 October 2006
Phoqus to progress ChronocortTM into Phase II clinical trials
Phoqus to raise £3.0 million to support further clinical development of ChronocortTM
London, UK--Phoqus Group plc (AIM: PQS) (“Phoqus” or the “Company”) announces today its intention to progress Chronocort™, its lead in-house development programme, into Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of adrenal insufficiency. The Directors believe that this presents an excellent opportunity to generate significant value growth for the Company and its shareholders. The Company also announces its intention to raise £3 million, gross of expenses, in a placing of new ordinary shares to institutional investors to support the Phase II clinical trials of Chronocort™ for the treatment of adrenal insufficiency.
Commenting on the decision to progress Chronocort™ into Phase II clinical trials, Andy Jones, CEO of Phoqus, said:
“We are very excited by the prospects for our internal development product, Chronocort™. We believe that progressing Chronocort™ through Phase II trials before we license it to a pharmaceutical partner gives us an excellent opportunity to generate significant value growth for the Company and its shareholders.”
Enquiries:
Phoqus Group plc - Tel: 01732 870227
Andy Jones, CEO
Peter Johnson, CFO
Nomura Code Securities Limited - Tel: 020 7776 1200
Juliet Thompson
Phil Walker
Financial Dynamics - Tel: 020 7831 3113
Sarah MacLeod / John Gilbert
Notes to editors
About Phoqus
Phoqus is a drug delivery company using proprietary electrostatic powder coating technology, LeQtracoat®, to provide an extensive range of innovative systems targeting the oral drug delivery market. Drug delivery technologies are applied to pharmaceuticals to provide benefits such as controlling the release of a drug into the body, enhancing patient compliance and improving the performance and efficacy of an existing drug. In turn, these benefits enable pharmaceutical companies to extend the life cycles of their products, strengthen their patent protection and thereby enhance the value of their marketed products and development pipelines. Phoqus is the only company using electrostatic powder coating technology for pharmaceutical applications and has over 120 granted patents.
Based in Kent, Phoqus was established in 1998 as a spin-out from Colorcon, a division of Berwind Pharmaceutical Services Inc. The Company was admitted to trading on AIM in November 2005 and is listed under the symbol "PQS".
Further background on the Company can be found at www.phoqus.com.
Phoqus Pharmaceuticals Limited
10 Kings Hill Avenue, Kings Hill, West Malling, Kent, ME19 4PQ
Telephone: +44 (0)1732 870227, Fax: +44 (0)1732 870228
E-mail: info@phoqus.com
