LEIDEN, Netherlands, Dec. 15, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Dutch biotechnology company Crucell N.V. (Euronext:CRXL) (Nasdaq:CRXL) announced today that Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) has met a clinical development milestone in connection with the PER.C6(R) technology licensed to Merck for its investigational HIV vaccine program.
"An AIDS vaccine is clearly one of the world's most pressing unmet medical needs, and Merck's program is one we are very proud to support," said Jaap Goudsmit, Crucell's Chief Scientific Officer. "The continuing clinical progress of this vitally important vaccine program further validates our PER.C6(R) technology as a highly useful production method."
About Crucell
Crucell N.V. is a biotechnology company focused on developing vaccines and antibodies that prevent and treat infectious diseases, including Ebola, influenza, malaria, West Nile virus and rabies. The company's development programs include collaborations with Aventis Pasteur for influenza vaccines, the U.S. National Institutes of Health for Ebola and malaria vaccines, and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and New York University for a malaria vaccine. Crucell's products are based on its innovative PER.C6(R) technology, which offers a safer, more efficient way to produce biopharmaceuticals. The company licenses its PER.C6(R) technology to the biopharmaceutical industry on a mostly non-exclusive basis. Licensees and CMO partners include DSM Biologics, GSK, Centocor/J&J and Merck & Co., Inc. Crucell is headquartered in Leiden, The Netherlands, and is listed on the Euronext and NASDAQ stock exchanges (ticker symbol CRXL). For more information, please visit www.crucell.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve inherent risks and uncertainties. We have identified certain important factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in such forward-looking statements. For information relating to these factors please refer to our Form 20-F, as filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on February 27, 2004, and the section entitled "Risk Factors". The company prepares its financial statements under generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (US GAAP).
Click here for a PDF version of this press release: http://hugin.info/132631/R/972417/142679.pdf
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CONTACT:
For further information please contact: Crucell N.V. Elizabeth Goodwin Director Investor Relations and Corporate Communications Tel. +31 (0)71 524 8718 e.goodwin@crucell.com Redington, Inc. Thomas Redington Tel. +1 212-926-1733 tredington@redingtoninc.com
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