http://www.summitplc.com/
Summit is an Oxford, UK based drug discovery company developing novel drug candidates to treat areas of high unmet medical need. Our strategy has evolved to focus on the development of two high-value clinical-stage programmes that target the fatal genetic disease Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) and infections caused by the superbug C. difficile

Summit Corporation PLC : Technology License Agr...
HUG
Summit Corporation plc
('Summit' or 'the Company')

SUMMIT ENTERS TECHNOLOGY LICENSE AGREEMENT WITH BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB

Oxford, UK, 11 September 2012 - Summit (AIM: SUMM), a UK drug discovery company, today announces that it has entered a technology license agreement with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) under which Bristol-Myers Squibb will use Summit's proprietary Seglin(TM) technology to identify and develop drug candidates for up to ten targets across multiple therapeutic areas.

"Summit is pleased to be partnering with one of the world's premier biopharmaceutical companies," commented Glyn Edwards, Chief Executive Officer of Summit. "This agreement with Bristol-Myers Squibb further reinforces our strategy as we seek alternative ways to realise the value of our Seglin technology while we concentrate our resources on advancing our core Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and C. difficile programmes."

Under the terms of the agreement, Bristol-Myers Squibb will be responsible for the discovery stage research and will have the exclusive right to develop and commercialise any Seglin products that are identified. Summit will receive a $100,000 technology access fee and is eligible for research, development and regulatory milestones of up to $30 million per product, plus royalties on worldwide sales of products arising from the technology.

Notes to Editors

About Seglin(TM) Technology
In human biology, the function of cells, tissues, pathways and physiological systems is fundamentally dependent on proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates and lipids. The importance of proteins and nucleic acids is well established in drug discovery but the targeting of carbohydrate biology remains largely underexploited. Seglin(TM) technology is an innovative drug discovery platform that aims to address this by using appropriate new chemistry space to access these carbohydrate drug targets. Seglins are orally available small molecules that act as carbohydrate mimics meaning they are ideally placed to exploit new carbohydrate related drug targets.

About Summit
Summit is an Oxford, UK based drug discovery Company targeting high-value areas of unmet medical need including Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and C. difficile infection. Summit is listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange and trades under the ticker symbol SUMM. Further information is available at www.summitplc.com.

Summit inks breakthrough Seglin deal with Bristol-Myers Squibb
7:05 am by Ian Lyall In C1100, the group has a potentially breakthrough treatment for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Its second major discovert, SMT 19969, is a highly potent anti-biotic designed to tackle the hospital superbug C.difficile.

Summit Corp (LON:SUMM) this morning unveiled a collaboration with one of the world’s largest pharmaceuticals companies that could eventually be worth US$30 million per product in research, development and regulatory milestone payments


http://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/47935/summit-inks-breakthrough-seglin-deal-with-bristol-myers-squibb-47935.html

:-))

Summit chief says Bristol-Myers partnership "a fantastic deal"
11:56 am by Ian Lyall It is hoped these second generation immunosugars will provide a radical new platform to develop drugs for illnesses such as Alzheimers Shares in Summit Corp (LON:SUMM) consolidated on the strong gains made yesterday as investors digested the huge potential of the drug developer’s tie-up with one of the world’s largest pharmaceuticals companies.

The deal with Bristol-Myers Squibb could be worth as much as US$30 million per product, but the US giant will initially pay US$100,000 fee to access the company’s Seglin technology.

It is hoped these second generation immunosugars will provide a radical new platform to develop drugs for illnesses such as Alzheimers.

The importance of proteins and nucleic acids is well established in drug discovery, but the targeting of carbohydrate biology remains largely underexploited.

Seglin technology hopes to redress the balance.

The partnership is part of the re-focused strategy set out by chief executive Glyn Edwards.

Last week he revealed he wanted “someone else to pick up the heavy lifting” on the exciting Seglin programme, which is still in the very early phase of development, to allow the company to focus on their two key drug candidates.

In C1100, the group has a potentially breakthrough treatment for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Its second major discovery, SMT 19969, is a highly potent anti-biotic designed to tackle the hospital superbug C.difficile.

Speaking from California, where he is attending a micro-biology conference and “talking about our c.diff product”, Edwards gave an upbeat assessment of the BMS tie-up.

“I think it is a really good deal. It shows a major pharmaceuticals company really values the technology,” he told Proactive Investors.

He revealed the Americans will initially use the Seglin technology to assess the potential of as many as 10 drug targets, making it a far broader collaboration than the headline suggests.

There is also the capacity to bring in other partners interested in using the platform to develop their own drug candidates.

And the group retains ownership of its OGA, or O-linked N-acetylglucosaminidase programme, which segues very neatly into the latest research on Alzheimer’s.

It is expecting further data from this study by the end of the year after which it will look for partners.

In the meantime the Bristol-Myers agreement reveals Summit can extract a substantial amount of value from so-called non-core assets.

“When we made our announcement last week and we said we wanted to focus on DMD and c.diff, this wasn’t because we didn’t think the other programmes weren’t worth anything,” said Edwards.

“It was more a case that we couldn’t get full value because we couldn’t put the full resource behind it.

“What this deal does is put the resources of a major pharma company behind the technology we can’t invest in.

“We retain some significant upside. They do the work and if they are successful they make some significant payments to us.

“So to me it is a fantastic way of exploiting the technology without having to put any money into it.

“They [BMS] have 10 targets for diseases they are going screen against.

“That means there could be ten products and each of those could give up to US$30 million in milestones and royalties on top of that. It really is a fantastic deal.”

At midday the stock was up 2 per cent at 3.32 pence, having advanced more than 30 per cent on Tuesday.

Interesting audio interview with Dr Glyn Edwards, Chief Executive Officer.

Click on the link to listen:

http://www.brrmedia.co.uk/event/104107/dr-glyn-edwards-chief-executive-officer

Nice 8% rise today

Yep, long may it continue!

It is today, up 7%

up 14.81%

Summit Corporation PLC : Research Update


http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=4451133

UPDATE: Summit c.diff drug to go in phase I trials; pre-clinical data very encouraging
1:52 pm by Ian Lyall UPDATE: Summit c.diff drug to go in phase I trials; pre-clinical data very encouraging --ADDS SHARE PRICE AND BROKER COMMENT---



Summit Group (LON:SUMM) said it has been given the go ahead to take its c.difficile drug candidate into phase I clinical trials as it released early stage data that give a hint to its huge potential.

The latest announcement comes exactly a fortnight after Summit signed drugs giant Bristol Myers Squibb to partner its second generation immunosugars programme, which could provide a radical new platform to develop drugs for illnesses such as Alzheimer’s.

And it is less than a month since chief executive Glyn Edwards unveiled a fundamental shake-up in the way the company will operate.

All of this suggests a step change in the pace of development at Summit.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency approval means SMT 19969 is on track to go into phase I trial by the end of the year with results expected to be reported in the first half of next. It will assess the safety and tolerability of the 19969, which is taken by mouth, and it will also look into what the body does to the drug. This early stage study won’t assess efficacy.

However Summit said it will present pre-clinical data to the One Bug, One Drug conference being held in Cambridge later today that will show 19969 has the potential to overcome the limitations associated with existing antibiotics used to treat c.diff.

In non-clinical efficacy studies, it combines potent activity against c. difficile with exceptionally high levels of antibacterial selectivity, Summit revealed this morning.

Importantly, it demonstrates efficacy in two key disease models and complete protection against recurrent disease.

In addition, the treatment is targeted to the gastrointestinal tract, the site of infection, and has “exceptionally low levels of resistance development while maintaining an excellent safety profile”, the early data reveal.

“Summit is pleased to receive regulatory approval to commence clinical trials of SMT 19969 as we are excited about its potential as a treatment for C. difficile infections,” said CEO Edwards.

“SMT 19969 is a narrow-spectrum antibiotic being specifically developed to treat this serious illness and the compelling package of preclinical data being presented today highlights that it has an ideal profile to protect against recurrent disease; the key clinical issue associated with this illness."

Shares in the company rose by as much as 7 per cent in early trade, but succumbed to a bout of profit-taking. At 2pm the stock was changing hands for 3.6 pence, down 0.03 pence on the day.

In the past month the stock has gained almost 30 per cent.

“We reiterate our positive view on the stock and eagerly await further progress,” said the company’s broker Singer Capital Markets in a short note to clients.

Up 10%

UP 7% good buying

Good to see this back at 8p, on the way

It's getting there! Good news released this morning :)

Summit Corporation PLC Positive Phase 1 Trial Results for SMT C1100 for DMD

TIDMSUMM

Summit Corporation plc
('Summit' or 'the Company')

SUMMIT ANNOUNCES POSITIVE PHASE 1 TRIAL RESULTS FOR SMT C1100 FOR TREATMENT OF
DUCHENNE MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY

Oxford, UK, 10 October 2012 - Summit (AIM: SUMM), a UK drug discovery company,
announces positive top-line results from a Phase 1 clinical trial of SMT C1100
for the treatment of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy ('DMD'), a fatal muscle wasting
disease for which there is currently no cure. SMT C1100, an oral small
molecule, is a potential disease modifying drug that works to increase or
upregulate the amount of a naturally occurring protein called utrophin. These
data will be presented at the 17(th) Annual Congress of the World Muscle
Society, 9-13 October 2012, Perth Australia.

The Phase 1 dose-escalating trial was conducted in healthy volunteers and
evaluated a new aqueous formulation of SMT C1100. The trial met its primary
endpoints with results showing the formulation to be safe and well tolerated at
all doses. Importantly, the new formulation also demonstrated improved levels
of bioavailability (absorption) of the drug that were above those anticipated to
be needed to achieve clinical efficacy. These results are strongly supportive
for the progression of SMT C1100 into patient clinical trials.

"The positive outcome from this Phase 1 trial is a significant step forward for
DMD and our utrophin upregulator drug SMT C1100," commented Glyn Edwards, Chief
Executive Officer of Summit. "Utrophin upregulation is an important mechanism
for treating DMD as it is expected to have broad applicability for all patients
regardless of the specific genetic fault causing their disease. We are highly
encouraged that the new formulation of SMT C1100 shows improved bioavailability
as we believe it supports the progression of this potential breakthrough
treatment into DMD patient clinical trials."

The double-blind, placebo-controlled trial examined single and multiple
ascending oral doses of a nanoparticle aqueous suspension formulation of SMT
C1100 in a total of 48 healthy volunteers. When single doses were increased from
50mg/kg up to 400mg/kg, SMT C1100 blood plasma levels were increased for several
hours above those required to give a 50% increase in utrophin levels in vitro
measured in cells taken from DMD patients. In addition, the new formulation
resulted in higher blood plasma concentrations of SMT C1100 when compared with
results from a previous Phase 1 healthy volunteer study that used a different
formulation. Analysis of the multiple ascending dose groups remains on-going
and results are expected to be reported later this year.

A copy of the presentation being given at the World Muscle Society Congress will
be available from Summit's website, www.summitplc.com.

The Phase 1 trial has been supported by a group of US DMD foundations: the
Muscular Dystrophy Association, Charley's Fund, Cure Duchenne, the Foundation to
Eradicate Duchenne, Nash Avery Foundation and Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy.

Notes to Editors

About SMT C1100
SMT C1100 is designed to upregulate and maintain the production of utrophin.
Utrophin is a protein that is highly expressed in foetal and regenerating
muscle but decreases as the muscle fibre mature and is eventually replaced by
dystrophin, a similar protein that maintains the integrity and healthy function
of muscles. Patients with DMD are unable to make dystrophin, resulting in
muscle fibre degeneration. However, if utrophin is continually expressed in the
mature fibre, it can functionally replace dystrophin and is expected to overcome
the deficit in patients with DMD. This approach is expected to be a universal
treatment for all DMD patients regardless of whether the disease was caused by
an inherited or spontaneous mutation. Summit has demonstrated in non-clinical
efficacy studies that SMT C1100 is capable of increasing utrophin to restore and
maintain the healthy function of muscles including the heart and diaphragm. SMT
C1100 has been granted orphan drug status in Europe and the US.

About Summit
Summit is an Oxford, UK based drug discovery Company targeting high-value areas
of unmet medical need including Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and C. difficile
infection. Summit is listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange and
trades under the ticker symbol SUMM. Further information is available at
www.summitplc.com.

- END -



Latest Presentations
17th World Muscle Society Congress

9th-13th October 2012
Presentation of top-line results from Phase I trial of SMT C1100 for treatment of ...




http://www.summitplc.com/userfiles/file/SMT%20C1100%20WMS%20poster%20FINAL%202.pdf

Summit Corporation PLC : £4.0 million Awar...
HUG
Summit Corporation plc
('Summit' or 'the Company')

SUMMIT AWARDED UP TO £4.0 MILLION FROM THE WELLCOME TRUST TO SUPPORT CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT OF SELECTIVE C. DIFFICILE ANTIBIOTIC

Oxford, UK, 22 October 2012 - Summit (AIM: SUMM), a UK drug discovery company, is pleased to announce that it has extended its partnership with the Wellcome Trust through a translational research award worth up to £4.0 million ($6.5 million) to support the development of SMT 19969 to clinical proof of concept studies. SMT 19969 is a novel, oral small molecule being developed as a specific antibiotic for the treatment of infections caused by C. difficile.

"Summit is delighted to extend its partnership with the Wellcome Trust to support the development of one of our core programmes," commented Glyn Edwards, Chief Executive Officer of Summit. "This Wellcome Trust award endorses the potential of SMT 19969, our promising antibiotic for the treatment of serious infections caused by C. difficile bacteria, and will provide non-dilutive funding to de-risk its development as it advances through important clinical milestones."

"C. difficile infection represent a serious healthcare threat and this £4.0 million translational award underlines the Wellcome Trust's commitment to supporting the development of new and effective antibiotic treatments," commented Ted Bianco, Director of Technology Transfer at the Wellcome Trust. "We are pleased to be extending our successful partnership with Summit and look forward to testing in the clinic the potential of the SMT 19969 drug."

Under the terms of the award, Summit will be eligible for up to £4.0 million in staged, success-based payments. Summit will immediately receive £1.26 million that will support a Phase 1 clinical trial in healthy volunteers and additional non-clinical studies designed to enhance the clinical data package. The Phase 1 trial is expected to commence by the end of 2012 with results expected in H1 2013. A successful outcome would trigger a further three payments from the Wellcome Trust with these contributing significantly towards undertaking a Phase 2 proof of concept trial in patients.

The award is being made as part of the Wellcome Trust's Translation Award programme. This represents the second funding award the Wellcome Trust has made to support Summit's C. difficile antibiotic programme and follows an award made under the Seeding Drug Discovery Initiative in 2009. A new funding agreement has been signed under which the Wellcome Trust share in net revenues generated by commercialisation of the programme.

Notes to Editors

Summit boss says Wellcome Trust deal provides "huge validation" of C.diff programme
11:32 am by Ian Lyall Earlier, the drug discovery group said it will receive staged payments, starting with £1.26 million that will support the phase I trial of its new antibiotic as well as “additional non-clinical studies” Summit’s (LON:SUMM) partnership with medical charity Wellcome Trust provides “huge validation” of the drug developer’s C.difficile programme as well as delivering a major source of non-dilutive financing, says boss Glyn Edwards.

He also revealed the cash injection of up to £4 million would allow the group to push the antibiotic, called SMT 19969, through the first two phases of clinical trials before it has to seek a commercial partner.

“Obviously if Wellcome is excited about this drug then other pharma partners are going to be excited about it,” the Summit chief executive added.

“What this means is we will be under no pressure to do an early deal that doesn’t reflect the full value of the programme because we have the firepower to take it to the end of phase II on our own, which is stunningly good.”

Earlier, the drug discovery group said it will receive staged payments, starting with £1.26 million that will support the phase I trial of its new antibiotic as well as “additional non-clinical studies”.

The phase I is set to begin by the end of the year with results expected by mid-2013.

Success in this early study would open the door to a further three payments from that would “contribute significantly towards undertaking a phase II proof of concept trial in patients”.

The award is being made as part of the Wellcome Trust's Translation Award programme.

This represents the second contribution made by Britain’s leading scientific organisations towards the AIM-listed biotech’s C.difficile antibiotic programme.

“It is a good deal in two main aspects: the first is validation of the product,” said Edwards.

“Wellcome is a huge funder of basic science in this area. This is one of the biggest awards they have ever given under this translation award scheme.

“And it is a huge validation that Wellcome has looked at the science behind the product and decided to make what, for them, is a fairly substantial award.

“It is huge validation of the approach we are taking. Any drug development is risky. But this has got the stamp from one of the world’s leading research organisations.

“The second part is the amount of cash we are receiving for the programme. It not only funds the phase I, which we had already raised money to do. It also makes a substantial contribution towards funding a phase II.

“From an equity point of view it is non-dilutive funding and has a major impact on the balance sheet.”

Summit raised around £5 million earlier this year and set aside around £1.5 million to complete a phase I trial on healthy volunteers.

The addition of the Wellcome money allows the group to push C.difficile into phase II and concentrate on how it will fund second stage clinical trials for SMT C1100, its flagship drug candidate for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. DMD is a fatal muscle wasting that affects only boys.

Earlier this month it cleared a “massive hurdle” with the release of positive phase I clinical data that showed SMT C1100 was safe and well tolerated at all doses.

Crucially it also revealed the drug was absorbed into the bloodstream at levels that would make it efficacious.

A previous formulation produced by Summit’s former partner BioMarin failed in this regard.

Where C1100 was originally suspended in corn oil, Summit scientists appear to have avoided problems by producing a nano-particulate suspended in water.

The next results, due before the year-end, will assess the safety signals from multiple doses of the treatment.

Assuming similar results the group will make preparations to take it into the phase II, the first patient study.

NASDAQ-listed Sarepta Therapeutics (NASDAQ:SRPT) scored some success recently when it revealed its potential treatment for DMD had shown signs of efficacy.

Edwards described this development and progress being made by Sarepta and another drug developer, Prosensa, as “exciting for the DMD community”.

But he added that C1100 may have even wider applications than the other drug candidates.

“There is definitely a feeling that DMD is still an area that has huge issues, but we are starting to make progress,” said Edwards.

“There is real optimism in the DMD space.”

Its a small british-based biotechnology company developing a potentially exciting new treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy,a rare genetically inherited, muscle-wasting condition. The first clinical results for its drug candidate are expected towards the end of the year. Its a high-risk project - the company's stockmarket valuation suggests investors are already discounting failure- yet it could surprise everyone.

Note - Streaming News is only available to subscribers to the Active Level and above



Summit Corporation PLC : Initiation of Phase 1 ...
HUG
Summit Corporation plc
('Summit' or 'the Company')

SUMMIT ANNOUNCE INITIATION OF PHASE 1 CLINICAL TRIAL OF SELECTIVE ORAL ANTIBIOTIC FOR THE TREATMENT OF C. DIFFICILE INFECTION

Oxford, UK, 31 October 2012 - Summit (AIM: SUMM), a UK drug discovery company, announces that it has initiated dosing of healthy volunteers in the Phase 1 clinical trial of SMT 19969, the novel, oral small molecule being developed as a selective antibiotic for the treatment of infections caused by the bacteria C. difficile. The trial is being supported as part of a £4.0m Translation Award from the Wellcome Trust.

"C. difficile infection remains a serious illness in hospitals, long-term care homes and increasingly the wider community, and current treatment options remain limited," commented Glyn Edwards, Chief Executive Officer of Summit. "Our novel antibiotic SMT 19969 is a selective treatment of C. difficile infection and we are very excited about advancing this promising drug into human clinical trials."

The Phase 1 trial is a randomised, dose-escalating, placebo-controlled study that will evaluate the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of SMT 19969. The study will enrol 56 healthy volunteers who will be divided into several cohorts and will receive single ascending doses and multiple ascending doses of SMT 19969. Headline results from the Phase 1 trial are expected to be reported in H1 2013.

Notes to Editors

About C. difficile Infection
C. difficile infection ('CDI') is a serious healthcare threat in hospitals, long-term care homes and increasingly the wider community. It is a serious illness that is caused by infection of the colon by the bacteria C. difficile, which produces toxins that cause inflammation, severe diarrhoea and in the most serious cases can be fatal. Patients typically develop CDI following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics that disrupt the normal gastrointestinal (gut) flora and so allow the C. difficile bacteria to flourish. Existing CDI antibiotics cause further damage to the gut flora and are associated with recurrent disease. This is the key clinical issue as repeat episodes are typically more severe and associated with an increase in mortality rates and healthcare costs.

About SMT 19969
SMT 19969 is a novel, oral small molecule antibiotic that is being specifically developed for the treatment of CDI. Results from non-clinical efficacy studies show that SMT 19969 combines potent activity against C. difficile with exceptionally high levels of antibacterial selectivity. This narrow spectrum antibiotic has displayed efficacy in two key disease models while showing complete protection against recurrent disease. SMT 19969 is targeted to the GI tract, the site of infection, and has exceptionally low levels of resistance development coupled with an excellent safety profile.

About Summit
Summit is an Oxford, UK based drug discovery and development company targeting high-value areas of unmet medical need including Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and C. difficile infection. Summit is listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange and trades under the ticker symbol SUMM. Further information is available at www.summitplc.com and follow Summit on Twitter (@summitplc).

About the Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation dedicated to achieving extraordinary improvements in human and animal health. It supports the brightest minds in biomedical research and the medical humanities. The Trust's breadth of support includes public engagement, education and the application of research to improve health. It is independent of both political and commercial interests. www.wellcome.ac.uk

- END -

For more information, please contact: