CARLSBAD, Calif., Aug. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that its Ibis division has shipped its first TIGER biosensor system to the United States Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Disease (USAMRIID), which will use the system to identify infectious agents for biowarfare defense. Ibis is deploying the TIGER biosensor system with support from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) under a subcontract from San Diego-based Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC). The TIGER (Triangulation Identification for Genetic Evaluation of Risks) biosensor system is a revolutionary system that can simultaneously identify thousands of infectious organisms without needing to know what might be present in a sample.
“Shipping our first, automated high-throughput TIGER biosensor system is a major milestone in achieving our commercialization plan,” said Michael Treble, President of Ibis and Vice President of Isis. “Having met the rigorous standards of the Department of Defense, the TIGER biosensor system’s specificity and sensitivity will allow USAMRIID to rapidly identify unexpected infectious organisms that have been difficult to identify using previously available methods. The TIGER biosensor system will also allow USAMRIID to efficiently analyze large numbers of environmental or human samples without the need to culture or sequence, providing the institute with the utility necessary for biowarfare defense.”
Ibis also plans to deliver a TIGER biosensor system this year to the Naval Health Research Center and to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), each for use in epidemiological surveillance, and to the Department of Homeland Security, for use in microbial forensics.
“In addition to delivering TIGER biosensor systems to our government customers, we plan to sell TIGER systems to pharmaceutical and healthcare customers for pharmaceutical process control, healthcare-associated infections and eventually, infectious disease diagnostics,” Mr. Treble added.
From inception through March 31, 2005, Ibis has earned $38.5 million in revenue from government partners. An additional $15.2 million is committed under existing contracts and grants, with the potential for added funding.
ABOUT TIGER AND THE IBIS DIVISION
The Ibis division has developed the TIGER (Triangulation Identification for Genetic Evaluation of Risks) biosensor system, a revolutionary system to identify infectious organisms. Ibis plans to commercialize the TIGER biosensor system to government customers for use in biowarfare defense, epidemiological surveillance and forensics; and to non-government customers for use in pharmaceutical process control, hospital-associated infection control and infectious disease diagnostics. Additional information about Isis’ Ibis division can be found at www.ibistiger.com or accessed from Isis’ homepage at www.isispharm.com.
The Ibis division has been funded by U.S. government agencies including the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and others.
ABOUT ISIS PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is exploiting its expertise in RNA to discover and develop novel drugs for its product pipeline and for its partners. The Company has successfully commercialized the world’s first antisense drug and has 11 antisense drugs in development to treat metabolic, cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases, and cancer. In its Ibis division, Isis is developing and commercializing the TIGER biosensor system, a revolutionary system to identify infectious organisms. As an innovator in RNA-based drug discovery and development, Isis is the owner or exclusive licensee of more than 1,500 issued patents worldwide. Additional information about Isis is available at www.isispharm.com.
This press release includes forward-looking statements regarding the development and commercialization of Isis Pharmaceuticals’ TIGER biosensor system, as well as the Company’s plans and goals for Ibis. Any statement describing Isis’ goals, expectations, intentions or beliefs is a forward- looking statement and should be considered an at-risk statement, including those statements that are described as Isis’ goals. Such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, particularly those inherent in developing and commercializing systems to identify infectious organisms that are effective and commercially attractive, and in the endeavor of building a business around such products. Isis’ forward-looking statements also involve assumptions that, if they never materialize or prove correct, could cause its results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward- looking statements. Although Isis’ forward-looking statements reflect the good faith judgment of its management, these statements are based only on facts and factors currently known by Isis. As a result, you are cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. These and other risks concerning Isis’ programs are described in additional detail in Isis’ annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2004, and its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2005, which are on file with the SEC. Copies of these and other documents are available from the Company.
Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
CONTACT: Navjot Rai, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications of IsisPharmaceuticals, Inc., +1-760-603-2331