nanoTherics and NanoBioMagnetics Enter Global Magnetic Nanoparticle Cross-License Agreement for Bio applications

Officials at UK-based nanoTherics Limited and US-based NanoBioMagnetics Inc, announced today that they have entered into a global cross-license agreement that provides their respective organisations with access to new business opportunities outside their respective geographies. The companies are pioneering use of magnetically responsive nanoparticles for a range of life science research and human health applications, in the emerging field of nanomedicine, that include diagnostics and targeted therapeutic delivery systems, and have found their respective technologies to be synergistic.

Dr. Linda Cammish, Chief Executive Officer of nanoTherics, said, “We are delighted to have entered into this agreement with NanoBioMagnetics, a company with a wealth of experience in developing novel nanoparticles for biomedical applications. The skill set is very complementary to nanoTherics and we are very much looking forward to working with the NanoBioMagnetics team.”

nanoTherics was formed in August 2007 to exploit novel gene transfection technology developed at Keele University, Staffordshire, UK and the University of Florida, USA which employs nanoparticles and magnetic fields to facilitate the delivery of foreign DNA into living cells.

Charles Seeney, Founder and CEO of NanoBioMagnetics, located in Edmond, Oklahoma, adds, “This agreement with nanoTherics represents a significant step forward for us, that will provide new opportunities for the company in a global arena, as well as opportunities for collaborative efforts for new targeted therapies.” NanoBioMagnetics Inc, is a nanobiomaterials company with focus on the application of magnetically responsive nanoparticles to the treatment of human health diseases. The company recently announced the issuance of its first patent, a technology for the middle ear amplification of sound.

Dr Cammish and Mr Seeney are quick to point out that, while the end-use applications may seem quite diverse, with nanoTherics now commercially introducing “magnefect-nano™”, a device designed to promote DNA uptake into cells, targeting research into genetic diseases such as cystic fibrosis, and NanoBioMagnetics developing a magnetic vectoring technology for the tumor-specific delivery of chemotherapeutics, in collaboration with the M D Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, the basic nanotechnology that drives both applications is quite similar. Both also agree that, looking forward, the agreement has the potential for significant synergy between the groups in development of new healthcare applications.

The emerging field of nanomedicine is defined as the monitoring, repair, construction and control of human biological systems at the molecular level, using engineered nanodevices and nanostructures (Nanomedicine, by Robert Frietas), and is projected to have a profound impact on the treatment and management of human health disorders. Both nanoTherics and NanoBioMagnetics believe this agreement will enable both companies to maintain leading edge roles in the development and commercialization of their respective technologies.