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HEMARINA and EUROBIO have entered into a distribution agreement for HEMOXCell®

HEMARINA and EUROBIO have entered into a distribution agreement for HEMOXCell®

 

PARIS, France – May 21th , 2013 – HEMARINA and EUROBIO, announce the signature of a commercial distribution agreement for HEMARINA’s laboratory product for accelerating cell cultures HEMOXCell®.

 

This agreement allows HEMARINA to market its first product in Europe. HEMARINA strategy is to partner with leading distributors of laboratory reagent and products while maintaining its internal development focusing on human health applications. This approach yields HEMARINA a greater degree to active the commercialization process of HEMOXCell® patented ingredients and effectiveness on cellular models widely used in major target markets.

Under the agreement, EUROBIO will market HEMOXCell® to its extensive customer base of R&D private and academic research centers and units. Through its multiple business presence and distribution agreements, located in Europe, Middle East and North Africa, all set with a dedicated sales team, EUROBIO is adding a new product, which is also a unique one to its line for cell culture.

 

Doctor Franck Zal, Chief Executive Officer and Scientific Executive Officer, HEMARINA, commented “We are very excited about that agreement which opens us the doors to France and then the rest of Europe, Middle East and North Africa regions in the cellular field. Partnering with such an important distributor as EUROBIO is a key step for HEMARINA towards unleashing the commercial potential of HEMOXCell®”

 

“We are very pleased that HEMARINA put its trust in our company. HEMOXCell® represents a new market opportunity. Our marketing, sales and technical support capabilities combined with the uniqueness and performance of HEMOXCell® should translate into great commercial success”, added Denis Fortier, General Manager, EUROBIO.

 

HEMOXCell® is a biotechnology based product dedicated to researchers willing to improve quality and accelerate cell cultures. HEMOXCell® will be fully commercialized in France by the second quarter this year and will be available across Europe, Middle East and North Africa by 2014 and 2015.

 

About HEMARINA:

HEMARINA is a biotechnology start-up based in Morlaix, France; developing innovative solutions for patients and healthcare industry based on its universal oxygen carriers portfolio and pipeline products. HEMARINA has four core business programs that all of them are patented breakthrough innovations: organs transplantation and tissues conservation, blood substitutes, infections and wound healing, and bio-production. HEMARINA core assets and knowhow are based on marine molecules and its corporate culture, policy and social responsibility are based on high unmet medical needs focus, public health issues solving mindset, excellence in science and processes, nature conservation and environment friendly approaches and attitudes.

For more information about Hemarina, visit www.hemarina.com

 

About EUROBIO:

EUROBIO is a french company manufacturing solutions for research on immunology, molecular and cellular biology. Celebrating half a century of history, EUROBIO is committed to developing innovative products dedicated to satisfied needs of research and diagnostics laboratories. EUROBIO has developed its own production unit and has two operating divisions: Life Sciences and Diagnostics managed by high-performing staff, and has always been committed to deliver  high-quality products, services and support. EUROBIO is working closely with scientists in academic research institutes i (CNRS, INSERM, INRA,… ), alongside biotechnology and Pharma companies, universities, hospitals and medical laboratories.

For more information about EUROBIO, visit www.eurobio.fr

 

About HEMOXCell®:

Intended Use: HEMOXCell® is an Oxygen carrier used to facilitate and enhance the growth of cells and the expression of recombinant proteins in cell culture systems. / Features: Macromolecule of 3,6MDa extracted from marine invertebrate and provides superior growth of cells when added to cell culture medium compared to cell culture medium alone. / Format Features: HEMOXCell® is a ready to use solution to be added in cell culture medium. For more information or query about HEMOXCell®, please contact EUROBIO.

 

Contacts:

For HEMARINA: Phone: +33 298 880 360 E-mail: media@hemarina.com Website: www.hemarina.com Twitter: @Hemarina

For EUROBIO AbCys: Phone: +33 169 079 477 E-mail: adv@eurobio.fr Website: www.eurobio.fr

HEMARINA expands its operations to Boston U.S.A. Hemarina Inc. will be the company affiliate for the America

HEMARINA, the French based Biotechnology Company, today announced its establishment in Boston, Massachusetts USA thru the incorporation of Hemarina Inc. on March 15th, 2013. The new affiliate will be in charge of North and South America and will allow HEMARINA to deploy its global strategy more efficiently, and will be the corporate link between its headquarters located in Morlaix, France to facilitate its partnerships in the Americas. Seven years after its creation, HEMARINA has decided to accelerate its developments and anticipates the registration of its product HEMO2Life® which is an additive to organ preservation solutions to enhance, and improve organ quality and preservation duration and conditions in the transplantation field. As one the world’s leading Life Sciences hubs, Boston and Cambridge, has a most flourishing and attractive environment, and therefore is a natural choice for a biotechnology company like HEMARINA.

Dr. Franck Zal, Chief Executive Officer and Scientific Executive Officer, HEMARINA commented: “The U.S. pharma and biotech markets tend to be early technology adopters, and Boston is an ideal location for Hemarina Inc. to benefit from this rich innovation ecosystem from a culture and networks perspectives. Furthermore, the new affiliate office is expected to facilitate the administrative and operational processes required for HEMARINA with its scientific and commercial partners in the United States including ongoing collaborations such as with the Naval Medical Research Center (NMRC) and Naval Medical Research Unit of San Antonio (NAMRU-SA).” The affiliate has been organized in collaboration with the law firm of Morse, Barnes-Brown & Pendleton, and ITRA Global The Stevens Group. Morse, Barnes-Brown & Pendleton will continue to act as legal counsel for Hemarina Inc. in its operations. The offices of Hemarina Inc. will be located in Ten Post Office Square, 8th Floor Boston, MA 02109.

About HEMARINA: HEMARINA is a biotechnology start-up based in Morlaix, France; developing innovative solutions for patients and healthcare industry based on its universal oxygen carriers portfolio and pipeline products. HEMARINA has four core business programs, all of which are patented breakthrough innovations: organ transplantation and tissue conservation, blood substitutes, infections and wound healing, and bio-production. HEMARINA’s core assets and know-how are based on marine molecules, and its corporate culture, policy and social responsibility are based on a focus on large unmet medical needs, a public health issues-solving mindset, excellence in science and processes, and nature conservation and environment friendly approaches and attitudes.
For more information about HEMARINA, please visit www.hemarina.com

About Morse, Barnes-Brown & Pendleton: Morse, Barnes-Brown & Pendleton focuses exclusively on the core legal services that businesses need to succeed. The firm is built on a unique business model that provides its clients with access to highly experienced counsel in the areas of corporate and corporate finance law; intellectual property; licensing and strategic alliances; employment and immigration; and tax planning and defense. While it enjoys a reputation for special competency in life sciences and other technology ventures, it represents clients in all industries and of all sizes – from startups to Fortune 1000 companies.
For more information about Morse, Barnes-Brown & Pendleton, please visit www.mbbp.com

About ITRA Global | The Stevens Group: The Stevens Group was founded in 1980 to provide commercial real estate services to corporate clients, assisting them in the leasing, acquisition and disposition of commercial real estate. The Stevens Group’s mission is to provide its clients with the most complete, unbiased real estate advice and the most efficient systems in business real estate, combining international reach and local knowledge to obtain the best possible space at the best possible terms.
For more information about ITRA Global The Stevens Group, please visit www.thestevensgrp.com/

Contacts:
For HEMARINA & Hemarina Inc: Phone: +33 298 880 360 E-mail: media@HEMARINA.com Website: www.hemarina.com Twitter: @HEMARINA Facebook: HemarinaBiotech
For MBBP: Phone: +1-781-697-2223 E-mail: pbarnes-brown@mbbp.com Website: www.mbbp.com
For Stevens Group: Phone: +1-617-886-9300 E-mail: dstevens@thestevensgrp.com Website: www.thestevensgrp.com

HEMARINA raises €6.3 Million in Series B Funding

This financing will help Hemarina bring to market its first product in the field of organ transplant, and will also strengthen its infrastructure as well as its R&D programs.

Morlaix, Finistère, France – July 10th, 2012 – HEMARINA, the most promising provider of universal oxygen carrier, today announced its €6.3 million in Series B funding. The syndicate was led by Inserm Transfert Initiative and includes historical investors such as Finistère Angels, Armor Angels, XMP and Arkéa Capital Investissement; and also a new entrant which is a family office represented and mandated by M. Maurice Lesaffre.

HEMARINA develops extracellular hemoglobin with a broad range of medical and industrial applications. Its pipeline is based on more than 20 years of research in marine biotechnology as well as through observation of marine biodiversity. Hemarina has four core business programs each of which is supported by patented breakthrough innovations: organs transplantation and tissues conservation; blood oxygen carriers; infections and wound healing; and bio-production. The Morlaixbased company is predicting to bring its first medical application product by end of 2013 in the field of kidney transplant.

This investment will help HEMARINA bring its first product to the market, (in the field of organ transplant), strengthen its organization and infrastructure, sustain its R&D programs, and finalize strategic alliances under discussion.

“We are anticipating a fruitful and great future for HEMARINA,” said Franck Zal, CEO. “With this round of fundraising we are looking forward to putting strategy into action as well as broadening our perspectives; this new round of investment shows the trust of our new partners and board members and we are committed to bring HEMARINA within a leading position in its field.”

“Inserm Transfert Initiative has been committed to supporting Hemarina since its seed financing. We are convinced that this innovative technology is one of the most appealing and promising oxygen carriers in development”, added Matthieu Coutet, Managing Partner, Inserm Transfert Initiative.

“We have supported HEMARINA since its earliest stages and so it was without hesitation that we participated in this B-round financing, and we are convinced to be witnessing the birth of a biotechnology company of international stature”, said Patrick Franchet, first President of Finistère Angels and representative of all Business Angels inside HEMARINA Board.

“I'm very excited to accompany Dr Franck Zal in this great entrepreneurial endeavor that will give me the opportunity to support a promising company and go thru its development, just as I started my own businesses in the past”, commented Maurice Lesaffre.

About HEMARINA

HEMARINA is a biotechnology start-up based in Morlaix, France; developing innovative solutions for patients and healthcare industry based on its universal oxygen carriers portfolio and pipeline products. HEMARINA core assets and know-how are based on marine molecules and its corporate culture, policy and social responsibility are based on high unmet medical needs focus, public health issues solving mindset, excellence in science and processes, nature conservation and environment friendly approaches and attitudes.

Lawyers:

For Hemarina: Priscilla Fiorucci -Chevalier Péricard Connesson & Associés.
For the Investors : Louis D’Urzo – Cabinet Orsay

ANR selects Hemarina’s HEMO2Perf® project

Morlaix, Brittany, Novembre 7th, 2011 - The French National Research Agency is to fund the HEMO2Perf® project, demonstrating once again the scientific and therapeutic interest in the oxygen carriers that Hemarina develops. This funding will pave the way to the clinical use of the Hemo2Life® solution for preserving kidney grafts.

Morlaix (France), 7 November 2011 — Hemarina, a French biotechnology firm specialized in the research and development of marine-derived oxygen carriers for therapeutic, industrial and research applications, announced that the French National Research Agency (ANR) selected the HEMO2Perf® project under the call for proposals for the ‘Biomedical Innovation through public-private Research Partnership (RPIB)’ program. The HEMO2Perf® project teams up Hemarina, the INSERM U927 research unit “Ischemia-reperfusion in kidney transplantation” at the Poitiers University Hospital, and the Health, Life, and Agricultural Sciences Infrastructures (IBiSA) facility ‘Surgery, Experimentation, Transplantation’ in Surgères.

“The HEMO2Perf® project involves the preclinical evaluation of HEMO2Life® for the storage of kidney transplants in preservation solutions and machine perfusion systems,” explained Professor Thierry Hauet from the INSERM U927 research unit and scientific officer of the IBiSA ‘Surgery, Experimentation, Transplantation’ facility in Surgères. “The first proof of concept has already been obtained for HEMO2Life® in cold static storage. These results were published in September 2011 in The American Journal of Transplantation and show that presevation solutions supplemented with HEMO2Life® lead to better preservation and faster recovery of kidney function after transplantation (1). Machine perfusion can oxygenate the kidney during organ storage. Adding an oxygen carrier such as HEMO2Life® to a machine perfusion system may also enhance the preservation of ‘borderline’ kidney grafts in perfusion machines. This is what we seek to test during the HEMO2Perf® project.”

The HEMO2Perf® project is to last three years and will receive € 700,000 in ANR funding. The work will be conducted on preclinical pig models at the ‘Surgery, Experimentation, Transplantation’ facility in Surgères.

“Our goal is to significantly improve the quality of organ preservation, which should limit the side effects of preservation,” said Thierry Hauet. “Better quality transplant organs should lead to better recovery of organ function post-transplantation and limit the ischemia-reperfusion injuries that are extremely detrimental for transplant patients and costly for the health-care system.”

“We are very pleased that HEMO2Perf® was selected by the ANR review committee,” said Franck Zal, founder and director-general of Hemarina. “HEMO2Perf® aims to position Hemarina as the key biotechnology company in the field of graft preservation. No new progress has been made in this field for more than 20 years. The current solutions have now entered into the public domain and only contain water, salts and sometimes colloids, and do not offer optimal graft preservation. Graft preservation is nevertheless a key step in organ transplantation and can determine the success or the failure of a transplant — anti-rejection drugs cannot repair a damaged organ. Transplant organs have become more and more rare and are therefore all the more valuable. At Hemarina, we strive to offer optimal physiological conditions for organ graft preservation. Donors and their families, not to mention the organ recipients, deserve no less. Our collaboration with Thierry Hauet at the INSERM U927 research unit is very effective. His group, composed of leading experts in the field, is a major player in organ transplantation research and works to provide transplant surgeons with the best solution for their patients,” said Franck Zal.

By selecting the HEMO2Perf® project, the ANR has once again recognized Hemarina for the quality of its work and scientific partnerships. Hemarina’s previous project, HEMORGAN on the use of an oxygen carrier derived from the extracellular hemoglobin of a marine organism to ensure better organ preservation before transplantation, had been selected under ANR calls for proposals ‘Emergence’ and ‘Biotechnology Research and Innovation’ in 2005 and 2007.HEMARINA plans to apply for a marketing authorization for HEMO2Life® in 2012. The application procedure will follow that required for ancillary therapeutic products (ATP).

 

(1) « Supplementation with a new therapeutic oxygen carrier reduces chronic fibrosis and organ dysfunction in kidney static preservation ». R Thuillier et al. American Journal of Transplantation 2011; 11(9): 1845-1860.

 

Ancillary therapeutic products (ATP) This category of therapeutics includes any product, except medical devices, that comes into contact with organs, tissues, cells or products of human or animal origin. Contact includes that which occurs during storage, preparation, transformation, packaging or transport before the actual human therapeutic use. ATPs primarily involve (tissue or organ) graft preservation solutions, media used for in vitro fertilization or media used for preparing cell therapy products. Marketing authorization is granted by the French Health Products Safety Agency (AFSSAPS) based on its review of the data provided by the manufacturer or importer on the quality, harmlessness and effectiveness in vitro of the product. The authorization is valid for a period of five years.

 

Biomedical Innovation through public-private Research Partnerships (RPIB) Launched in February 2011 by the ANR, the call for RPIB proposals selected 19 projects to fund from the 126 applications received. Designed to promote and facilitate technology transfer between the public and private sectors of biomedical sciences, the RPIB program requires that projects team up partners from academic research and private companies.

Project proposals were to target the discovery, development and optimization of therapeutic products, vaccines, or galenic formulations; diagnostic tools and products; or research tools or biomolecule production.

The ESOT Young Investigator Award

Morlaix, Brittany, September 15th, 2011 - HEMARINA, a young French biotechnology company that is developing breakthrough innovations from oxygen carriers of marine origin announces the distinction of the article recently appeared in the American Journal of Transplantation (Thuillier and al. Supplementation With has New Therapeutic Oxygen Carrier Reduces Chronic Fibrosis and Organ Dysfunction in Kidney Static Preservation, American Journal of transplantation. 2011; 11 (9) 1845-1860).

The "ESOT Young Investigator Award" was handed to Dr. Raphaël Thuillier (INSERM U927) during the 15th congress of the ESOT which was held at the beginning of September in Glasgow (Scotland). This prize rewards the quality of the work and the scientific contribution to transplantation. It is a new gratitude of the profit of the HEMO₂life® solution developed by Hemarina as an additive for organ preservation solutions and the important stage which it represents in the field of the conservation of transplants.

American Journal of Transplantation

HEMARINA announces that a study on the use of HEMO2Life® has just been published in the American Journal of Transplantation, the leading journal in the field of transplantation
This paper establishes the scientific validity and benefit of hemoglobin M101, developed by HEMARINA as an additive for organ preservation solutions. This confirmation represents an important milestone for the preservation of grafts.
Co-authored by INSERM, INRA, CNRS, UPMC, and HEMARINA, this study published in the leading journal of organ transplantation demonstrates that the HEMO2life® solution developed by HEMARINA has been validated by the scientific and medical community.
Morlaix, France, August 31, 2011 – HEMARINA, a young French biotechnology company that is developing breakthrough innovations from oxygen carriers of marine origin for therapeutic and industrial use announces the publication of a study demonstrating the major benefits of HEMO2life® in comparison to the organ preservation solutions currently used in private hospitals (Thuillier et al. Supplementation With a New Therapeutic Oxygen Carrier Reduces Chronic Fibrosis and Organ Dysfunction in Kidney Static Preservation, American Journal of Transplantation. 2011; 11(9):1845-1860).
This study confirms the efficiency of the innovative technology developed by HEMARINA. The in vivo trials show that the addition of HEMO2life® to the most frequently used preservation solutions on the market leads to better preservation and faster recovery of kidney function after transplantation. Therefore, on the short term, the use of HEMO2life® promotes immediate organ function and, on the long term, it reduces inflammation and thus leads to better preservation of organ integrity.
These results demonstrate that the transplant performed with a kidney preserved in a HEMO2life®-supplemented solution has better prognosis for transplant success and for organ recovery post-transplantation. HEMO2life® maintains the transplant organ in better conditions by providing continuous oxygenation, according to the organ’s needs and without causing oxidative stress.
“HEMARINA is delighted to have finalized HEMO2life® so quickly. HEMO2life® is an innovative solution that protects grafts and grafts are a second chance for patients to live normally. Because transplant organs are becoming rarer, it is essential to preserve them in the best possible conditions and avoid the problem of delayed graft function, which can damage the organ,” declared Franck Zal, Ph.D., co-founder and General and Scientific Director of HEMARINA. "Since Hemo2life is a secondary therapeutic product, the marketing
authorization process is shorter than for drugs and we predict that this solution will be available for graft preservation in France as of 2012."
Given the current shortage of transplant organs, these positive results mark an important step in the field of transplantation. Not only should HEMO2life® improve the transplant success rate, but it also should enhance “borderline” organs and thus increase the number of grafts available for transplant.
Finally, by improving post-transplant kidney function, HEMO2life® should decrease the need for dialysis in transplant patients. Dialysis is an expensive medical routine and very costly for the health-care system.
This study was conducted in conjunction the CNRS UMR 7144 research unit directed by Professor François Lallier (CNRS and UPMC University Paris 6), the INSERM U927 research unit led by Professor Thierry Hauet in Poitiers, and the IBiSA “Surgery, Experimentation, Transplantation” facility at INRA (Domaine Expérimental du Magneraud).
About HEMARINA
Based in Morlaix, Brittany, France, HEMARINA is an innovative biotechnology R&D company. All its technology has been patented (licensed to UPMC-CNRS) and is based on over twenty years of fundamental research. HEMARINA was founded in March 2007 by researchers who discovered a family of extracellular hemoglobins found in marine organisms that satisfy all the requirements needed to develop a universal oxygen carrier. HEMARINA strives to build mutually beneficial collaborations with leading research laboratories and pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and veterinary companies.
For more information on HEMARINA, visit www.hemarina.com.

HEMARINA Signs Research Agreement to Study

HEMARINA Signs Research Agreement to Study the last generation of universal oxygen carrier, HEMOXYcarrier®
Morlaix, Finistère, France 28th February 2011 HEMARINA, a French Biotechnology company developing breakthrough innovation for therapeutical applications using marine oxygen carrier, today announced that it has recently entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. Naval Medical Research Center for the use of HEMOxycarrier®, the last generation of universal oxygen carrier. The CRADA, titled, Advancing Oxygen Therapeutic Agent development by evaluating the vasoactivity, oxygen carrying capacity, and effectiveness of HEMARINA-M101 (HEMOXYcarrier®) in a non clinical model as a pre hospital resuscitation fluid for traumatic brain injury, with or without hemorrhagic shock is a three-year study that will test the HEMOXYcarrier® on laboratory models.
This research responds to the identified medical need to improve pre-hospital aid of traumatic brain injury (TBI), which may be complicated by hemorrhagic shock (HS), by evaluation novel oxygen therapeutics that may reduce neurological damage in the immediate post-injury phase. This novel generation of oxygen therapeutic agent should be screened for potential use. Therefore, a screening survey is proposed to evaluate HEMOXYcarrier® for pre-hospital use in combat casualties with TBI/HS. The financial conditions were not being disclosed.
"The overall objective of this research agreement is the evaluation of the HEMOXYcarrier® product in the pre- hospital setting for casualties with polytrauma TBI/HS" said Dr. Franck ZAL, HEMARINA’s Chief Executive Office and Chief Scientific Officer. Dr. Franck ZAL also indicated that the preclinical studies already obtained by the company and by a research group of the University of California, San Diego on this product are very positive and do not possess the adverse effects demonstrated for the other generations of the Hemoglobin Oxygen Carrier (HBOC). Indeed, other HBOC were manufactured using chemically modified intracellular vertebrate hemoglobin (bovine and human) in order to work extracellularly, whereas HEMOXYcarrier® is no viscous and composed of giant extracellular hemoglobins, which was already selected by the evolution millions of years ago and work already free in the circulation of marine organisms, and do not provoke vasoconstriction after perfusion on animal models.
About HEMARINA
HEMARINA based in Morlaix, Finistère, France, is an innovative Research and Development company in biotechnology. All his technology is patented (licence UPMC-CNRS) and based on over twenty years of fundamental research. The founders of this company created in March 2007 have identified a family of extracellular hemoglobins coming from marine organisms that answer at all the specifications needed to make an universal oxygen carrier. The Company is focused on developing mutually beneficial agreements with leading research laboratories, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and veterinary companies.
For more information about Hemarina, visit www.hemarina.com.