Alexandra Avgustinova from The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK was awarded first prize of £2,000 for her research entitled Characterization of the Tumor-Fibroblast Cross-talk in a Mouse Model of Disease Progression. “For any young scientist, the opportunity to share scientific work is extremely rewarding. Beyond that, having my work acclaimed by a panel of experts is a great honor indeed,” commented Alexandra Avgustinova. “Receiving this award fuels my hope and desire to see my research in practical application in the future. I would like to thank The Institute of Cancer Research for enabling me to conduct this research and MedImmune for the recognition.”

Second and third prizes of £1,000 and £500 were awarded to Metamia Ciampricotti from The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands and Holly Barker from The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK, respectively.

Congratulating the winners, Dr Thorsten Hagemann, Clinical Senior Lecturer, Barts Cancer Institute, Queen Mary University of London, UK and one of the competition’s judges said, “It is extremely encouraging to see the quality of scientific work being produced by these young scientists. Initiatives such as this competition are an essential part of our fight against cancer – highlighting new research, helping us to discover fresh scientific talent and new therapeutic solutions to human disease. Alexandra’s research is cutting edge science which will have an immediate impact on cancer treatment”.

“MedImmune is committed to fostering the development of the next generation of leading scientists focused on improving human health. This competition provides us with the opportunity to highlight and reward the innovative work of talented scientists, which in the current economic climate we feel is especially important,” said Matthew McCourt, Director of Biology, Oncology at MedImmune. “We congratulate all ten finalists for being selected in this tough, competitive programme and feel privileged to be able to provide some recognition for their dedication.”

The competition was open to graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in Europe with ten finalists shortlisted to present their research to an expert panel of judges including Dr Thorsten Hagemann, Clinical Senior Lecturer, Barts Cancer Institute, Queen Mary University of London, UK, Dr Christian Blank, Group Leader, Immunology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands and a senior executive from both MedImmune and AstraZeneca. The focus of the competition – tumor microenvironments – reflects the research interests of MedImmune’s UK-based Oncology Department in Cambridge. The three winners were announced at the awards ceremony in Cambridge University’s prestigious Downing College following evaluation of their presentations on the basis of scientific merit, innovation and delivery.

About MedImmune

MedImmune, the global biologics arm of AstraZeneca plc. (LSE: AZN.L, NYSE: AZN) has approximately 3,500 employees worldwide and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. For more information, visit MedImmune’s website at http://www.medimmune.com.

GAITHERSBURG, MD, January 20, 2011 – MedImmune’s Oncology group announced today preclinical results showing that MEDI-573, a targeted monoclonal antibody, broadly suppresses pathways that have been shown to play a critical role in the development and progression of many solid tumors. The study, published in the February 1 issue of Cancer Research (a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research), suggests that MEDI-573 inhibits multiple biological pathways related to cancer. 

 MEDI-573 is the only human monoclonal antibody (MAb) currently under clinical development that neutralizes both insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I and IGF-II, growth hormones that regulate cell growth, survival, differentiation, and transformation (i.e., the process of acquiring cancerous characteristics). This MedImmune compound specifically inhibits IGF signaling through two important pathways: IGF-1R and IR-A (insulin receptor isoform A). Unlike the other IGF-1R-targeting MAbs in development that target only IGF-1R, MEDI-573 neutralizes both the receptors IGF-1R and IR-A as well as their hybrid receptors.  In addition, MEDI-573 spares the insulin receptor isoform B (IR-B), which interacts with insulin and is crucial for the metabolism of glucose – the body’s main source of energy. Therapies that affect IR-B have been shown to raise or drop blood sugar levels, both of which can cause serious health problems. Preliminary data from MedImmune’s first-time-in-human study suggest that MEDI-573 does not alter glucose homeostasis.

“MEDI-573 represents an innovative approach for the treatment of solid tumors with the potential for greater and more consistent inhibition of cancer cell growth than treatments that only target one pathway,” said Jin Gao, Ph.D., Scientist II in Oncology Research at MedImmune and lead author of the study.  “The data from our pre-clinical studies are highly promising.  Ongoing studies in humans will provide us with a better understanding of the clinical impact of MEDI-573.”

This in vivo study demonstrates that MEDI-573 inhibited the activity of IGF signaling pathways in mice implanted with two different tumor cell lines, C32 and P12.  In this study, 86% and 91% tumor growth inhibition (TGI) was achieved in mice treated with 30 or 60 mg/kg MEDI-573, respectively.

 In addition, the study found that using ¹⁸F-FDG-PET imaging (fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography) may provide a non-invasive way to monitor treatment response within a few days of starting treatment, prior to documented reductions in the tumor size.

About MEDI-573 (Anti-IGF MAb)

IGF signaling pathways play an important role in the development and progression of many solid tumors.  Disruption of IGF signaling pathways by neutralizing IGF-I and IGF-II ligands enables broader suppression of the IGF system and is a novel strategy for the treatment of solid tumors.  MEDI-573 is a dual-targeting fully human monoclonal antibody that neutralizes IGF-I and IGF-II ligands. In preclinical studies, this neutralization was shown to block IGF-1R, IGF-1R/ IR-A hybrid and IR-A signaling, which inhibited cancer cell growth.  MEDI-573 is in phase 1 clinical evaluation in patients with advanced solid tumors and is planned to begin phase 2 studies this year.

 About MedImmune

MedImmune, the worldwide biologics business for AstraZeneca PLC (LSE: AZN.L, NYSE: AZN), has approximately 3,500 employees worldwide and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. With an advancing pipeline of promising drug candidates, MedImmune strives to deliver life-changing products, a rewarding career to our employees and a tireless commitment to improving patient health. For more information, visit MedImmune’s website at www.medimmune.com.

“The initiation of this trial represents an important step forward in our commitment to advancing our oncologic biologics pipeline addressing different mechanisms to treat cancer,” said Gerald McMahon, Ph.D., MedImmune’s Senior Vice President, Research and Development and Head of the Oncology Innovative Medicines unit.  “We are very eager to understand the potential of this investigational agent.”

This Phase 1 dose-escalation study will evaluate the safety, tolerability, and antitumor activity of the product candidate in adult patients with advanced gastrointestinal cancers, with dose escalation in subsequent cohorts based on safety and tolerability.  Once the maximum tolerated dose is determined, additional study subjects with refractory colorectal or pancreatic cancer will be enrolled in a dose-expansion phase to further assess the safety and antitumor activity.   

Preclinical studies have demonstrated potent activity of the CEA BiTE antibody against human cancer cell lines and inhibition of tumor growth in animal models. 

“We are very pleased to see the third BiTE antibody enter the clinic,” said Christian Itin, Ph.D., Micromet’s President and Chief Executive Officer.   “Pre-clinical results reported to date suggest that MT111 may represent a new approach to treating gastrointestinal cancers, and may also have potential applications in other solid tumors.”

MedImmune and Micromet are advancing the development of this product candidate under a collaboration agreement signed in June 2003.  Under the terms of the agreement, development and commercialization will be led by MedImmune in the U.S. and outside of Europe, and by Micromet in Europe. 

Additional information regarding this Phase 1 study, including enrollment criteria and site locations, will be available soon on the U.S. government’s clinical trials database at http://www.clinicaltrials.gov.

About BiTE Antibodies

BiTE® antibodies are designed to direct the body’s cytotoxic, or cell-destroying, T cells against tumor cells, and represent a new therapeutic approach to cancer therapy. Typically, antibodies cannot engage T cells because T cells lack the appropriate receptors for binding antibodies. BiTE antibodies have been shown to bind T cells to tumor cells, ultimately inducing a self-destruction process in the tumor cells referred to as apoptosis, or programmed cell death. In the presence of BiTE antibodies, T cells have been demonstrated to serially eliminate tumor cells, which explains the activity of BiTE antibodies at very low concentrations. Through the killing process, T cells start to proliferate, which leads to an increased number of T cells at the site of attack.

About MedImmune

MedImmune, the worldwide biologics unit for AstraZeneca PLC (NYSE: AZN), has approximately 3,500 employees worldwide and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. For more information, visit MedImmune’s website at www.medimmune.com.

About Micromet, Inc.

Micromet, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative antibody-based therapies for the treatment of cancer. Its product development pipeline includes novel antibodies generated with its proprietary BiTE® technology, as well as conventional monoclonal antibodies. The Company’s lead product candidate blinatumomab (MT103) is currently the subject of a pivotal trial in patients with minimal residual disease positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia.  Micromet has collaborations with a number of leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including Bayer Schering Pharma, Boehringer Ingelheim, MedImmune, Merck Serono, Nycomed and sanofi-aventis. Additional information can be found at www.micromet.com.

Safe Harbor

This release contains certain forward-looking statements regarding Micromet and the BiTE antibody MEDI-565 (MT111) that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to be materially different from historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include statements regarding the future development and applications of MEDI-565 (MT111). You are urged to consider statements that include the words “will,” “potential,” “may,” or the negative of those words or other similar words to be uncertain and forward-looking. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from any future results expressed or implied by any forward-looking statements include the risk that MEDI-565 (MT111) does not demonstrate safety and/or efficacy in clinical trials, delays in development and testing, the risk that MEDI-565 (MT111) will not receive marketing approval, and the risks associated with reliance on outside financing to meet capital requirements. These factors and others are more fully discussed in Micromet’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009, filed with the SEC on March 5, 2010, and Micromet’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2010, filed with the SEC on November 9, 2010, as well as other filings by the Company with the SEC.

GAITHERSBURG, Md. November 16, 2010.  Today, MedImmune announced that researchers will present data from its oncology portfolio, including new clinical data, at two upcoming medical congresses in Europe and the United States.

“At MedImmune, we are thinking about cancer and treatment in new ways, using insights and understanding of the disease to discover breakthrough biologic therapies that can be used to treat specific cancers for the individual patient,” said Jerry McMahon, Senior Vice President and Oncology Innovative Medicines Unit Leader.  “We are excited about the progress of the oncology portfolio and are looking forward to its advancement of multiple oncology products into expanded clinical studies in the near future.”

With innovative antibody and biologic technologies, the MedImmune Oncology pipeline is focusing on developing new therapies to eliminate cancer cells in more effective and targeted ways.  This research is addressing the key areas critical to the development and progression of cancer: immune-mediated killing, vascular modulation, growth factor, and survival signaling.

“The identification of novel cancer drug targets and associated biologic markers has not only altered the way we view cancer, but is truly revolutionizing our standard of care,” said Bahija Jallal, Executive Vice President Research and Development at MedImmune.  “It is this research, with products like moxetumomab pasudotox (CAT-8015), that will help develop more effective solutions to targeting malignant tumor cells and providing a more personalized approach to medicine.”

New data presentations

Four MedImmune-sponsored posters are being presented at the 22^nd EORTC-NCI-AACR symposium on “Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics” starting on Tuesday, November 16 in Berlin.  EORTC-NCI-AACR is a joint meeting of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer, the National Cancer Institute and the American Association for Cancer Research.  These abstracts include:

• Glioblastoma multiforme is characterized by high incidence of PDGFRα expression and susceptibility to the PDGFRα-specific antibody MEDI-575 in mouse tumor models – presented by Dr. Philipp Steiner, on Wednesday, November 17
• Inhibition of PDGFRα in tumor stroma with MEDI-575 enhances activity of carboplatin/  paclitaxel and delays tumor regrowth in a NSCLC xenograft model – presented by Dr. Philipp Steiner, on Wednesday, November 17
• Phase I study of MEDI-575, a fully human monoclonal antibody targeting PDGFRα in subjects with advanced solid tumors – presented by Dr. Robert Lechleider, on Thursday, November 18
• MEDI-573, a dual IGF-1/-2 neutralizing antibody, blocks IGF-1R and IR-A signaling and maintains glucose homeostasis in a phase 1 study for advanced solid tumors –presented by Dr. Michael Menefee, on Thursday, November 18

Then in December, two MedImmune-sponsored posters are being presented at the 52^nd ASH (American Society of Hematology) starting on Saturday, December 4 in Orlando, including:

• A phase I study of moxetumomab pasudotox (CAT-8015), an anti-CD22 recombinant immunotoxin, in relapsed/ refractory hairy cell leukemia (HCL): updated results – presented by Dr. Robert Kreitman, on Sunday, December 5
• Complete remissions in 3 of 12 patients with chemotherapy-refractory pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) during phase I testing of the anti-CD22 immunotoxin moxetumomab pasudotox (CAT-8015)– presented by Dr. Alan Wayne, on Monday, December 6

About MedImmune

MedImmune, the worldwide biologics business for AstraZeneca PLC (LSE: AZN.L, NYSE: AZN), has approximately 3,500 employees worldwide and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. With an advancing pipeline of promising drug candidates, MedImmune strives to deliver life-changing products, a rewarding career to our employees and a tireless commitment to improving patient health. For more information, visit MedImmune’s website at www.medimmune.com.

Carmela De Santo a scientist from The Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, UK, was awarded first prize of £2,000 for her research in immune modulation entitled ‘A novel melanoma immunoescape mechanism based on the secretion of serum amyloid A and differentiation of IL-10-secreting neutrophils’. “It is a great honour to win this competition and to have the opportunity to present my research and gain feedback from leading experts in oncology,” said Carmela De Santo. “It is encouraging to see a research-focused company recognizing young scientists and supporting us in this way. I would like to thank MedImmune for this opportunity and acknowledgement.”

Second and third prizes of £1,000 and £500 were awarded to Alexandre Trindade from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Technical University of Lisbon (UTL), Lisbon, Portugal and Gulbenkian Institute of Science, Oeiras, Portugal for his research in angiogenesis, and Thomas Cox from The Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK for his research in extracellular matrix modulation respectively.

“We are extremely impressed with the caliber of the scientific research being conducted by these researchers,” said Dr Christian Blank, one of the competition’s judges and Group Leader, Immunology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, The Netherlands. “Increasing our understanding of tumour microenvironments can help improve our overall understanding of how cancers behave. The research these young scientists are conducting will add to the pool of knowledge the scientific community can draw upon when developing new therapies.”

“One of our primary objectives at MedImmune is to promote and advance health and science education,” said Dr. Klaus Bosslet, Vice President Research, Oncology, MedImmune. “This competition is part of our commitment to investing in the development of the next generation of leading scientists. These young scientists could one day occupy the top echelons of scientific research and we at MedImmune are honored to play a part in their future careers by providing some recognition for their hard work.”

The competition was open to graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in Europe with ten finalists shortlisted to present their research to an expert panel of judges including Professor Adrian Harris, Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, UK; Dr. Christian Blank, Group Leader, Immunology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, The Netherlands; Dr. Klaus Bosslet, Vice President Research, Oncology, MedImmune and Dr. Scott Hammond, Senior Scientist, Oncology, MedImmune. The focus of the competition – tumour microenvironments – reflects the research interests of MedImmune’s UK-based Oncology Department in Cambridge. The three winners were announced at the awards ceremony at Cambridge University’s prestigious Downing College following evaluation of their presentations on the basis of scientific merit, innovation and delivery.

About MedImmune

MedImmune, the worldwide biologics unit for AstraZeneca PLC (LSE: AZN.L, NYSE: AZN), has approximately 3,500 employees worldwide and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland USA. With an advancing pipeline of promising drug candidates, MedImmune strives to deliver life-changing products, a rewarding career to our employees and a tireless commitment to improving patient health. For more information, visit MedImmune’s website at www.medimmune.com.

“Through innovative approaches, MedImmune strives to apply novel treatment paradigms to help extend and improve the lives of people with cancer and we are proud to share data from our increasingly broad oncology portfolio at this year’s meeting,” said Klaus Bosslet, vice president, oncology research.

MedImmune research scheduled to be presented includes: 

• Fully human anti-interleukin-6 (IL-6) monoclonal antibody suppresses the growth of human tumor xenograft in vivo (Poster Session: Monoclonal Antibodies 1, abstract 2432, poster section 18) – Monday, April 19 from 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

• Cytotoxicity of the anti-CD22 immunotoxin HA22 against pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) (Poster Session: Pediatric Brain Tumors and Leukemia, abstract 4356, poster section 19) – Tuesday, April 20 from 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

• Combination of MEDI3617, a fully human anti-angiopoietin 2 monoclonal antibody, with inhibitors of the VEGF pathway enhances antitumor activity in vivo (Poster Session: Novel/New Antiangiogenic Therapeutic Approaches, abstract 1364, poster section 15) – Monday, April 19 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

• EphA2-targeting antibody-gelonin specifically binds and kills target-expressing tumor cells, including multi-drug resistant (MDR) lines (Poster Session: Antibody Technologies, abstract 4399, poster section 21) – Tuesday, April 20 from 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

• EphB4 promotes or suppresses Ras/ERK pathway depending on cellular contexts: implications for EphB4 as a cancer target (Poster Session: Intracellular Signaling 1, abstract 307, poster section 10) – Sunday, April 18 from 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

• The CEA/CD3-bispecific antibody MEDI-565 (MT111) binds a nonlinear epitope present in the full-length but not a short splice variant of CEA (Poster Session: Modified Antibodies and Oncolytic Viruses, abstract 2584, poster section 24) – Monday, April 19 from 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

• In vitro and in vivo pharmacology of MEDI-565 (MT111), a novel CEA/CD3-bispecific single-chain antibody for treatment of gastrointestinal adenocarcinomas (Poster Session: Immunomodulatory Agents and Interventions, abstract 5625, poster section 31) – Wednesday, April 21 from 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

• Metastatic colorectal cancer cells from patients previously treated with chemotherapy are sensitive to T cell killing mediated by CEA/CD3-bispecific T cell-engaging BiTE antibody (Poster Session: Monoclonal Antibodies 2, abstract 5338, poster section 19) – Wednesday, April 21 from 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

• Molecular characterization of circulating tumor cells using fluidigm biomark dynamic array (Poster Session: Molecular Classification of Tumors, abstract 796, poster section 30) – Sunday, April 18 from 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

• Application of circulating tumor cells and circulating cell-free DNA to assess the pharmacodynamic response to chemotherapy in xenograft models (Poster Session: Biomarkers Predictive of Response to Therapy 2, abstract 3736, poster section 33) – Tuesday, April 20 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. in Exhibit Hall A-C.

About MedImmune

MedImmune, the worldwide biologics business for AstraZeneca PLC (LSE: AZN.L, NYSE: AZN), has approximately 3,300 employees worldwide and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. With an advancing pipeline of promising drug candidates, MedImmune strives to deliver life-changing products, a rewarding career to our employees and a tireless commitment to improving patient health. For more information, visit MedImmune’s website at www.medimmune.com.

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