ABLYNX AWARDED EU2.1 MILLION GRANT TO SUPPORT DEVELOPMENT OF NOVEL NANOBODIES(R) FOR OCULAR APPLICATIONS


GHENT, Belgium, Aug. 13, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ablynx [Euronext Brussels: ABLX] today announced that it has been awarded a €2.1 million grant by the Flemish Agency for Innovation by Science and Technology (IWT) to help advance a wholly-owned programme, which will explore a novel approach to the treatment of diseases of the eye by utilising some of the unique characteristics of Nanobodies. The grant is available over a period of three years and will allow the development and subsequent testing of Nanobody leads in relevant pre-clinical disease models. 

Dr Tony De Fougerolles, CSO of Ablynx, commented: "This grant is a further clear endorsement of the innovative potential of the Nanobody platform and its ability to generate differentiated drugs in disease areas which are scientifically challenging and which represent a high unmet medical need. Ophthalmology is an increasingly important area for many pharmaceutical companies as they seek to meet the demands of an ageing population. We are very grateful for the continued commitment by IWT to support world-class science in Belgium."             

About Ablynx

Ablynx is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of Nanobodies®, a novel class of therapeutic proteins based on single-domain antibody fragments, for a range of serious human diseases, including inflammation, haematology, oncology and pulmonary disease. Today, the Company has more than 30 programmes in the pipeline and seven Nanobodies in clinical development. Ablynx has on-going research collaborations and significant partnerships with major pharmaceutical companies including AbbVie, Boehringer Ingelheim, Merck & Co, Merck Serono and Novartis. The Company is headquartered in Ghent, Belgium. More information can be found on www.ablynx.com.

For more information, please contact

Ablynx:

Dr Edwin Moses
CEO
t:   +32 (0)9 262 00 07
m: +44 (0)7771 954 193 /
     +32 (0)473 39 50 68
e:  edwin.moses@ablynx.com

Marieke Vermeersch
Associate Director Investor Relations
t:   +32 (0)9 262 00 82
m: +32 (0)479 49 06 03
e:  marieke.vermeersch@ablynx.com
Follow us on Twitter @AblynxABLX

Ablynx media relations Consilium Strategic Communications:

Mary-Jane Elliott, Amber Bielecka, Lindsey Neville
t:   +44 203 709 5700
e:  ablynx@consilium-comms.com

Pdf version of the press release http://hugin.info/137912/R/1848300/644939.pdf

HUG#1848300