|
|
Enron Mail |
If you are reading this message in plaintext or if you have an AOL address =
you must click on this link: http://listserv.otcjournal.com/otcjournal/2001= 1220-1.html and wait for a web page to automatically open up to properly r= ead this newsletter.=20 [IMAGE]=09=09[IMAGE][IMAGE]=09 [IMAGE]=09 [IMAGE] December 20, 2001 [IMAGE] [IMAGE] Volume IV, Issue 108 [IMAGE] = Email : info@otcjournal.com URL : http://www.otcjournal.com To OTC= Journal Members: [IMAGE] Year End Update on Astralis LTD (OTC BB: AST= R) [IMAGE] We started covering Astralis at the end of September, prior t= o the completion of a merger which made Astralis a public company. At the t= ime we were very excited about the public having the opportunity to get in = on the ground floor of a potential medical breakthrough at a valuation comm= ensurate with levels generally reserved for sophisticated investors in the = biotech industry. While the stock has been lackluster for the last two mo= nths, the company announced an Agreement on December 12th which serves to r= einforce our original hypothesis. By way of reminder, Astralis "has compl= eted clinical studies in Venezuela using first generation Psoraxine to trea= t 3,000 psoriasis patients, the majority of whom responded positively with = few side effects. Of the 3,000 treated patients, 638 achieved complete remi= ssion, whilst nearly half of all patients experienced a reduction in diseas= e of between 70% and 90%, as measured by the Psoriasis Area and Severity In= dex (PASI), a validated outcomes measure. Overall, 96% of the patients had = a positive response to Psoraxine, although these results have not yet been = independently verified." from December 12 press release. On December 12th= , Astralis revealed it had entered into several agreements with SkyePharma = PLC (NASDAQ: SKYE), a British pharmaceutical company which specializes in d= rug delivery technologies. The press release revealed that Astralis will = pay a $5 million license fee for drug deliveries technologies. Conversely, = SkyePharma will invest $20 million directly into Astralis in the form of a = convertible preferred security in return for 15.3% of the company. SkyePh= arma's investment of $20 million in return for 15.3% of the company implies= they see upside in Astralis' technology at a $130 million valuation, a lev= el from which they certainly hope and intend to make a substantial return o= n their investment. Based on the current price of the stock, and our esti= mate of 38 million shares issued and outstanding, the market is currently p= lacing a value on the company of just over $100 million. Simply put, this= means Astralis can be purchased up to about $3.40 per share before you are= paying more than SkyePharma was willing to pay. They are investing $20 mil= lion. SkyePharma's revenues were up 40% through the first six months of 2= 001, an explosive growth rate and the sign of a well managed company. Loo= k for this stock to start behaving better in 2002. Once the funding is comp= leted, Astralis will be positioned to apply for an upgraded listing to eith= er the NASDAQ or the American Stock Exchange. The risk associated with an= investment in Astralis is mitigated greatly by the capital they now have t= o fund the New Drug Application and a partnership with a successful interna= tional biotech company. Here is the complete text of the news release for= your review: Wednesday December 12, 6:01 am Eastern Time Press Releas= e SOURCE: SkyePharma PLC; Astralis LTD SkyePharma and Astralis Enter Agr= eements For Promising New Psoriasis Treatment LONDON, and FLORHAM PARK, N.= J., Dec. 12 /PRNewswire -- SkyePharma PLC (Nasdaq: SKYE; LSE: SKP) and Astr= alis LTD (OTC Bulletin Board: ASTR - news) announce several agreements conc= erning the formulation and development of Astralis' novel injectable vaccin= e therapy, Psoraxine(TM), for the treatment of all forms of psoriasis, a ch= ronic skin disorder that affects approximately 3% of the world population. = Under the terms of a technology access agreement, SkyePharma will receive= from Astralis a US$5 million license fee, which will be recognised as reve= nue over the lifetime of the contract, for access to DepoFoam and other rel= evant drug delivery technologies. In addition, through a service agreement,= SkyePharma will provide all development, manufacturing, pre-clinical and c= linical development services for second generation Psoraxine, up to the com= pletion of Phase II clinical studies. On completion of Phase II studies, As= tralis will offer SkyePharma the option to acquire the worldwide licensing = and distribution rights to Psoraxine. If SkyePharma does not take the optio= n, Astralis will seek a marketing partner to fund Phase III clinical studie= s and to provide a sales and marketing infrastructure. It is anticipated th= at an Investigational New Drug (IND) application to start Phase I-B clinica= l studies will be filed with the US Food and Drug Administration in the fir= st half of 2002. In a separate transaction, SkyePharma will make a total = equity investment in Astralis of up to US$20 million in convertible preferr= ed shares, on payment for which SkyePharma will own 15.3% of Astralis. Skye= Pharma will make an initial investment of US$10 million on signature of the= agreement. The remaining US$10 million investment will be paid at times an= d in quantities, amongst other conditions, dependent on the date of filing = the US IND, up to January 31, 2003. There is no approved cure for psorias= is. Most approved treatment protocols provide temporary or incomplete relie= f and may, with certain systemic treatments, cause serious side effects. Ps= oraxine, developed by Astralis' Chairman Dr. Jose Antonio O'Daly MD, PhD, i= s a protein that stimulates cells from the patient's immune system to rever= se the inflammatory process responsible for psoriasis symptoms. Astralis = has completed clinical studies in Venezuela using first generation Psoraxin= e to treat 3,000 psoriasis patients, the majority of whom responded positiv= ely with few side effects. Of the 3,000 treated patients, 638 achieved comp= lete remission, whilst nearly half of all patients experienced a reduction = in disease of between 70% and 90%, as measured by the Psoriasis Area and Se= verity Index (PASI), a validated outcomes measure. Overall, 96% of the pati= ents had a positive response to Psoraxine, although these results have not = yet been independently verified. Professor James Leyden, a Board member o= f the American Academy of Dermatology and past chairman of the Dermatology = Foundation, said, ``I have had the opportunity to review the data generated= in Venezuela, and was very encouraged by the results. I believe Psoraxine = could be an exciting new treatment alternative for many of the world's psor= iasis sufferers. We look forward to becoming an integral part of the ongoin= g clinical program.'' Michael Ashton, SkyePharma's chief executive office= r commented, ``Our ability to provide Astralis with manufacturing, pre-clin= ical, clinical and regulatory services, as well as access to a broad drug d= elivery technology platform, makes SkyePharma ideally suited to their needs= . We, in turn, are very excited by the opportunity to share in Astralis' pr= omising discovery. It is rare to find a potential drug that has already sho= wn such encouraging, early-stage clinical results in around 3,000 patients.= '' Astralis' Chief Executive Officer, Mike Ajnsztajn, said, ``We are exci= ted to enter into this agreement with SkyePharma, because they have a prove= n track record in achieving FDA approval for novel products as evidenced by= the dermatological product, Solaraze, indicated for actinic keratosis. Thi= s relationship will enable us to validate the results from our prior clinic= al studies and to move aggressively toward gathering the necessary data for= US regulatory and marketing approval. SkyePharma's equity investment confi= rms our collective commitment to introduce this promising product.'' This= press release may contain forward-looking statements regarding SkyePharma = PLC or Astralis LTD. Actual results may differ materially from those descri= bed in the press release as a result of a number of factors, including but = not limited to the following: There can be no assurance that Psoraxine will= be successfully developed or manufactured, or that final results of human = clinical trials will result in the regulatory approvals required to market = products, or that final regulatory approval will be received in a timely ma= nner, if at all, or that patient and physician acceptance of this product w= ill be achieved. SkyePharma PLC and Astralis LTD undertake no obligation to= revise or update any such forward-looking statement to reflect events or c= ircumstances after the date of this release. Notes Astralis LTD, an eme= rging biotechnology company based in New Jersey, focuses on the research an= d development of novel treatments for immune system disorders and skin dise= ases. Psoraxine, the company's first product, is an innovative drug under d= evelopment for psoriasis, and is based on the company's discovery of a new = gene sequence of proteins. To date, clinical data suggest remission of this= skin condition in patient trials in Venezuela. SkyePharma PLC, an establ= ished drug delivery company, based in the UK, provides innovative services = to major pharmaceutical partners from the point of drug discovery through t= he approval process. Its five technologies, oral, injectable, inhalation, t= opical, and nanoparticulate solubilisation encompass the vast majority of d= elivery systems in use by the pharmaceutical industry. For more information= , visit SkyePharma's web site at http://www.skyepharma.com . Psoriasis = Psoriasis is a chronic, genetically based remitting and relapsing scaly and= inflammatory skin disorder that affects approximately 3% of the world's po= pulation. Psoriasis symptoms result from the overproduction of skin by bloo= d cells associated with the immune system. These blood cells become confuse= d and act as though the skin was damaged, manufacturing skin cells at a muc= h faster rate than is required by undamaged skin. The overproduction of ski= n can cause everything from itchy rash like patches to painful pustules and= massive inflammation. Most current treatments are sub-optimal and some sys= temic treatments can cause serious side effects. Additional information = can be obtained from: International Federation of Psoriasis Associations a= t http://www.ifpa-pso.org US National Psoriasis Foundation at http://www= .psoriasis.org The Psoriasis Association (UK) Tel: +44 (0) 1604 711129 S= OURCE: SkyePharma PLC; Astralis LTD Charts Provided Courtesy Of Trade= Portal.com The OTC Journal is a proud partner of the SwingWire.com Onlin= e Investment Community . A next generation Online Analyst Exchange providin= g Members the ability to search, review, track and monitor some of the Inte= rnet's best Online CAs (CyberAnalysts). Members have the opportunity to pot= entially achieve higher returns by viewing top performing portfolios and re= ceiving real-time alerts from favorite CAs. SwingWire.com also has a lu= crative incentive model for experienced investors and traders who consisten= tly outperform the market. Share market ideas with other like-minded invest= ors, establish a proven track record, provide insightful commentary, attrac= t followers and ultimately become one of the Internet's highest paid and mo= st sought after CyberAnalysts! Click here to receive your FREE 30-Day Tr= ial Membership with no further obligation. Sign Up Today! Disclaimer= The OTCjournal.com Newsletter is an independent electronic publication c= ommitted to providing our readers with factual information on selected pub= licly traded companies. All companies are chosen on the basis of certain fi= nancial analysis and other pertinent criteria with a view toward maximizin= g the upside potential for investors while minimizing the downside risk, wh= enever possible. Moreover, as detailed below, this publication accepts com= pensation from certain of the companies which it features. Likewise, this = newsletter is owned by MarketByte, LLC. To the degrees enumerated herein, = this newsletter should not be regarded as an independent publication. Cl= ick Here to view our compensation on every company we have ever covered, o= r visit the following web address: http://www.otcjournal.com/disclaimer.ht= ml for our full profiles and http://www.otcjournal.com/trading-alerts/disc= laimer.html for Trading Alerts. On November 1, 2001, MarketByte LLC ente= red into a modified agreement regarding coverage of Astralis LLC rendering = the previously published compensation disclaimer null and void. MarketByte = LLC has been paid a fee of $100,000 in cash and 20,000 options, exercisable= at $2 for previously published coverage of Astralis by Investor Relations = Group. By mutual agreement, MarketByte LLC and Investor Relations Group ter= minated the obligation effective November 1, 2001. Therefore, any ongoing o= r future coverage subsequent to November 1, 2001 of Astralis LLC by the OTC= Journal is voluntary. There is no current contractual obligation. MarketBy= te LLC now has no direct or indirect relationship of any kind with the mana= gement of Astralis LLC or Investor Relations Group as it pertains to Astral= is LLC. All statements and expressions are the sole opinions of the edi= tors and are subject to change without notice. A profile, description, or o= ther mention of a company in the newsletter is neither an offer nor solicit= ation to buy or sell any securities mentioned. While we believe all source= s of information to be factual and reliable, in no way do we represent or g= uarantee the accuracy thereof, nor the statements made herein. The editor= , members of the editor's family, and/or entities with which they are affil= iated, are forbidden by company policy to own, buy, sell or otherwise trade= stock for their own benefit in the companies who appear in the publication= unless specifically disclosed in the newsletter. The profiles, critiques= , and other editorial content of the OTCjournal.com may contain forward-loo= king statements relating to the expected capabilities of the companies ment= ioned herein. THE READER SHOULD VERIFY ALL CLAIMS AND DO THEIR OWN DUE DI= LIGENCE BEFORE INVESTING IN ANY SECURITIES MENTIONED. INVESTING IN SECURIT= IES IS SPECULATIVE AND CARRIES A HIGH DEGREE OF RISK. THE INFORMATION FOUND= IN THIS PROFILE IS PROTECTED BY THE COPYRIGHT LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES AN= D MAY NOT BE COPIED, OR REPRODUCED IN ANY WAY WITHOUT THE EXPRESSED, WRITTE= N CONSENT OF THE EDITORS OF OTCjournal.com. We encourage our readers to = invest carefully and read the investor information available at the web sit= es of the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") at http://www.sec.gov= and/or the National Association of Securities Dealers ("NASD") at http://w= ww.nasd.com . We also strongly recommend that you read the SEC advisory to = investors concerning Internet Stock Fraud, which can be found at http://ww= w.sec.gov/consumer/cyberfr.htm . Readers can review all public filings by c= ompanies at the SEC's EDGAR page. The NASD has published information on how= to invest carefully at its web site. Unsubscribe Here You can unsu= bscribe from this list at any time by Clicking Here and HITTING SEND. If y= ou are having difficulty removing yourself or wish to change your address p= lease go to http://listserv.otcjournal.com/opt.cgi?email=3DMIKE.CARSON@ENRO= N.COM . =09 [IMAGE]=09=09 [IMAGE]=09=09 [IMAGE]=09=09 [IMAGE]=09=09 [IMAGE]=09=09 [IMAGE]=09=09 [IMAGE]=09=09 [IMAGE]=09=09 [IMAGE]=09[IMAGE]=09 =20 --- You are currently subscribed to otcjournal as: MIKE.CARSON@ENRON.COM To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-otcjournal-1011326V@lyris.otcjou= rnal.com
|