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Multicell Technologies Demonstrates Drug Candidate's Powerful Tumor-Destroying Capabilities for Virally Induced Cancers such as Cervical Cancer


Company's Patented Toll-like Receptor Agonist and Ig-Peptide Therapeutic Eradicates Cancer in Preclinical Animal Model

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MultiCell Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB:MCET - News), developing first-in-class drugs based on advanced immune system modulation and other proprietary technologies, today announced that co-administration of MCT-465, a Toll-like Receptor (TLR) agonist, with the Company's patented antigen presenting immunoglobulin therapeutic resulted in the control of primary tumor growth, induced the immune system to completely destroy the tumors, and ultimately prevented morbidity and mortality in 60 percent of treated animals.

MultiCell's unique technology platforms, designed to treat disease by modulation of the human immune system, may have valuable application as a treatment for deadly diseases such as cervical cancer and other cancers that are caused by viruses.

The method involves the loading of an antigen presenting cell with at least one tumor associated T-cell epitope attached to an immunoglobulin backbone to form an Ig-peptide molecule ("IgNP") followed by administration the IgNP in conjunction with MCT-465, a dsRNA TLR agonist adjuvant therapeutic.

"We believe these experimental results represent a potentially valuable breakthrough in cancer treatment. Several cancers, such as cervical cancer, are induced by viruses, and are able to overpower the immune system and spread throughout the body," said Dr. Stephen Chang, Chief Executive Officer of Multicell Technologies. "We demonstrated conclusively that co-administration of MCT-465 with a virus specific epitope grafted to our patented antigen presenting immunoglobulin therapeutic ("IgNP") completely destroyed tumors and prevented mortality."

MultiCell is an innovator in the science of modulating the human immune system with unique platform technologies, focusing on the development of breakthrough drugs to treat serious autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis and type-1 diabetes, as well as influenza. Currently, the market for therapies that address these diseases is estimated at $8 billion worldwide. The new therapeutic combination further expands the Company's potential therapeutic development targets to include cancer.

"Our work in this area was recently published in the Journal of Immunology, and we have filed several patents covering the technology," noted Dr. Chang.

"The most exciting aspect of our work is we administered MCT-465 and IgNP after the tumor had grown to a very large size in the animal, and observed complete destruction of the tumor by the animal's immune system. We were able to overcome cancer's ability to hide from detection by the immune system. We believe that the implications for this work are far-reaching and could someday help treat the millions of patients suffering from various cancers," said Dr. Chang.

About MultiCell Technologies, Inc.

MultiCell Technologies, Inc. is an integrated biopharmaceutical company committed to the development of breakthrough therapeutics based on a portfolio of therapeutic candidates and patented drug development technology. MultiCell's drug development program is focused on modulation of the immune system.

MultiCell's therapeutic pipeline includes drug candidates some of which are in various advanced stages of human clinical trials. These therapies include:

  • MCT-125 for the treatment of chronic fatigue in MS patients. MCT-125 completed a Phase II clinical trial and demonstrated significant efficacy in reducing chronic fatigue in MS patients. There is no drug specifically approved for the treatment of chronic fatigue in MS patients anywhere in the world.
  • MCT-175 for the treatment of relapsing-remitting MS. MCT-175, in preclinical development for the treatment of relapsing-remitting MS, targets disease specific autoaggressive T-cells that destroy the myelin sheath of nerve cells. MCT-175 successfully ameliorated the disease in animal models.
  • MCT-275 for the treatment of type-1 diabetes. MCT-275, in preclinical development, targets disease-specific autoaggressive T-cells that destroy insulin producing cells in the pancreas. MCT-275 completely reversed the type-1 diabetic phenotype and prolonged life in animal models.
  • MCT-465 in an adjuvant therapy for the treatment of virus infection and cancer. MCT-465 in preclinical studies successfully reduced pulmonary influenza virus levels 1,000-fold in animal models, and has demonstrated effectiveness in reducing virus levels of HIV and HCV in animal models. MCT-465 in preclinical studies successfully eliminated certain types of tumors in animal models.

The Company also holds unique cell-based technology for use in drug discovery screening applications, and is a leading producer of the cell lines needed by the biotechnology industry to develop new drugs and therapeutics. For more information about MultiCell Technologies, please visit http://www.multicelltech.com.


Contact:

MultiCell Technologies, Inc.
Dr. Stephen Chang
MCETInvestor@MultiCelltech.com

or

Trilogy Capital Partners (Financial Communications)
Paul Karon, 800-592-6067
paul@trilogy-capital.com



Source: Business Wire (Tuesday November 21,
9:25 am ET)