CEVEC signs license agreement for the development and commercialization of exosomes for therapeutic use

• Agreement with Evox Therapeutics supports the utility of CAP(R) technology in the production of exosomes
• Exosomes offer distinct advantages as highly effective drug carriers
• Evox Therapeutics intends to develop CAP(R)-derived exosomes for several disease areas and indications

Cologne, Germany, April 16, 2020

CEVEC Pharmaceuticals GmbH (CEVEC) today announced the signing of a license agreement with Evox Therapeutics, Ltd. (Evox) for the development and commercialization of therapeutic exosomes using CEVEC's proprietary CAP(R) technology.

The license agreement is the result of an ongoing collaboration between Evox and CEVEC which has demonstrated the utility of CEVEC's CAP(R) technology to produce exosomes. Evox intends to develop CAP(R)-derived exosomes for several disease areas and indications. As part of the agreement, CEVEC will be eligible for milestone payments and royalties. Further financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.

"We are delighted that Evox, a leader in the exosome therapeutics space, has chosen our CAP(R) cell line and technology for some of their exosome programs" said Dr. Nicole Faust, CEO of CEVEC. "Over the last years, our CAP(R) cells have already shown perfect suitability for the production of various complex therapeutics, including recombinant proteins and viral vectors for gene therapy applications. With CAP(R) cells for exosomes, we are now enabling pharma and biotech companies to enter into a new field of promising therapeutic modalities and targeted drug delivery."

Evox Therapeutics is a privately held, Oxford-based biotechnology company focused on harnessing and engineering the natural delivery capabilities of extracellular vesicles, known as exosomes, to develop an entirely new class of biotherapeutics. Evox has created substantial proprietary technology to modify exosomes using various molecular engineering, drug loading and targeting strategies.

CAP(R) technology for exosome production for therapeutic use

Exosomes, a subgroup of extracellular vesicles composed of cellular membranes, have been recognized as important mediators of long-distance intercellular communication and are involved in a wide range of biological processes. Given their natural structure and characteristics, exosomes are highly effective drug carriers for different synthetic and biological therapeutic agents including nucleic acids and proteins. Their natural ability to carry therapeutic molecules across membranes, including the blood-brain-barrier, make exosomes a promising new modality for targeted drug delivery.

CEVEC's CAP(R) technology platform comprises a comprehensive portfolio of optimized human suspension cell lines that allows the fully scalable and efficient production for a variety of complex biomolecules including proteins, viral vectors, vaccines and exosomes. CAP(R) cells can be engineered to express specific macromolecules on the outer surface as well as in the inside of exosomes. Growing in suspension in chemically defined media, CAP(R) cells enable an easy scale-up of the production process to commercial volumes. In various projects, CAP(R) cells have generated high yields of very homogenous high-quality exosomes, verifying CEVEC's technology as an effective and safe production system.

About CEVEC:

CEVEC is a leading provider of high-performance cell technology for the manufacturing of advanced bio-therapeutics from R&D to manufacturing scale. The company's product portfolio comprises platform technologies for gene therapy viral vectors (AAV, Adeno, oncolytic viruses) and complex recombinant proteins.

CEVEC has developed the first stable AAV Producer Cell Line Technology which stably incorporates the sequences of the serotype-specific capsid and the gene of interest into the genome of the cell. The helper virus-free platform based on suspension cells delivers a consistent quality of AAV vectors over time due to the elimination of any transfection step.

CEVEC's CAP(R) Technology based on human suspension cells is the ideal production platform for RCA-free adeno viral vectors, oncolytic viruses, viral vaccines and exosomes.

With CAP(R) Go CEVEC provides a solution to the increasing need for recombinant production of complex and highly glycosylated protein molecules, including laminins, coagulation factors, and plasma proteins.

For more information, please visit www.cevec.com

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