U-M Tech Spin Out Gets $30 Million Equity Investment

ANN ARBOR ? University of Michigan technology spin out NanoBio Corp. will get a $30 million investment from Perseus, a private equity fund management company. The money will be used to support NanoBio’s expanding clinical pipeline.

NanoBio has developed multiple topical anti-infective products and

vaccine candidates derived from its NanoStat technology.

The company’s lead product candidates are treatments for cold sores, nail fungus and a vaccine for influenza.

“We made this investment because NanoBio is uniquely positioned to

develop major new drugs and vaccines to treat infectious diseases.

Infectious diseases are an increasing medical problem due to organisms that

have become resistant to current drugs, major infections in an aging

population and novel pathogens that are constantly emerging,? said Perseus Senior Managing Partner Norman Selby.

?There is a significant need for new treatment approaches that will control these

infections without causing systemic side effects or producing more

resistant organisms. Our goal with this investment in NanoBio is to build a

leading biotechnology company with a broad portfolio of new pharmaceutical

products to treat these types of infections.?

NanoBio’s lead product candidate, NB-001, is currently in development

as a potential treatment for herpes labialis (cold sores). NB-001 is a

topical emulsion composed of nanometer-size water/oil droplets coated with

a surfactant that has demonstrated potent anti-viral, anti-bacterial and

anti-fungal activity in previous studies.

A recently completed Phase 2 study in over 300 subjects indicated NB-001 was safe, well-tolerated and accelerated the healing of cold sores by killing the herpes viruses at the lesion site. NanoBio is positioned to initiate Phase 3 studies for this product in 2007. Another product candidate, NB-002, in development as a

treatment for nail fungus (onychomycosis), will enter Phase 2 trials later

this year. NB-006 is in pre-clinical development as a mucosal vaccine for

influenza.

The patented NanoStat technology platform was developed by a research

team led by Dr. James Baker, Jr., who directs the Nanotechnology

Institute at the University of Michigan. Dr. Baker is also the chief

scientific officer at NanoBio. Patents related to the technology are

licensed to NanoBio by the U-Michigan on an exclusive worldwide

basis.

NanoBio is a private biopharmaceutical company with

headquarters and laboratory facilities in Ann Arbor. The company

is developing and commercializing a range of products based on a