TUEBINGEN, Germany | Feb. 3, 2006 | IT pioneer and SAP founder Dietmar Hopp is supporting the future work of biopharmaceutical enterprise CureVac to the tune of 22 million euros through his investment companies DH Capital GmbH & Co. KG and OH Beteiligungen GmbH und Co. KG.

Hopps' millions will primarily be used for all phases of a clinical trial for a drug against various types of carcinoma. CureVac is pursuing an extraordinary immune-therapy approach, using stabilized m-RNA molecules, which could be relevant to various disease patterns, and in particular to cancer.

New strategy in cancer treatment

The immune system is usually in the vanguard of the struggle against tumours, so researchers from Baden-Wurttemberg are now trying to program body cells with certain RNA molecules (m-RNA).

This means the human body is temporarily capable of systematically activating the immune system. The body is then able to combat tumours using specially produced proteins, which are encoded through the m-RNA. The long-term objective is to develop an m-RNA vaccination against solid tumours.

New-style company

"This new injection of capital will allow CureVac to prove the clinical effectiveness of its main product, RNActiveTM, and to work towards a strong development portfolio", says CureVac chief executive Dr. Ingmar Hoerr. As far as Dr. Ralf Kindervater is concerned, chief executive of the internal service and marketing company for the State of Baden-Wurttemberg, BIOPRO Baden-Wurttemberg GmbH, CureVac is one of the outstanding biotech undertakings in Baden-Wurttemberg: "CureVac is a new style biotech company. It has generated a strong service portfolio from a platform technology and, moreover, is developing innovative products for the pharmaceutical sector."

Background information on m-RNA

So-called m-RNA (messenger RNA) is the bio-molecule from which the genetic information for the production of proteins is read into the body - in other words a construction plan for proteins. CureVac has developed a process to stabilize m-RNA and make it available physiologically. Whereas m-RNA is normally active in the body for no more than a few hours before decomposing, the CureVac molecule remains stable for several days. CureVac is the only provider of such highly stable m-RNA at present.

BIOPRO Baden-Wuerttemberg GmbH is the service and marketing company for biotechnology and life sciences in the State of Baden-Wurttemberg.

SOURCE: BIOPRO Baden-Wuerttemberg GmbH

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