Point Roberts, WA, New York, NY - September 24, 2013
(Investorideas.com newswire) Investorideas.com, an investor research
portal specializing in investing ideas in leading sectors including
biotech and medical technology stocks, issues an exclusive Q&A with
Jim Joyce, Chairman and CEO of Aethlon Medical, Inc. (
OTCQB:AEMD).
Mr. Joyce discusses the recent launch of its new Exosome Sciences, Inc.
(ESI) and what that potentially represents to Aethlon and its
shareholders.
Q: Investorideas.com
Jim on September 12 th you announced the formal launch of Exosome
Sciences, Inc. (ESI), a wholly-owned subsidiary previously established
by Aethlon. Can you tell investors the focus behind the subsidiary and
why the timing was right to launch now?
A: Jim Joyce, Chairman and CEO
The rationale for launching Exosome Sciences was driven by the
belief we could transform an unvalued asset into a substantially valued
asset that would benefit our shareholders. As the focus of Aethlon
Medical is therapeutic devices, the market had little reason to assign
any value to candidate diagnostic products as our resources are going to
be dedicated toward clinical progression and future commercialization
of the Aethlon Hemopurifier® and other pipeline therapies. Especially,
now that FDA has approved an IDE that allows us to initiate the first
human clinical studies of our Hemopurifier® in the United States.
Still, it became increasingly clear that we needed to leverage our
proprietary techniques to isolate and quantify exosomes before the
window for related diagnostic innovation began to close. It was also
hard to ignore the lofty valuations being awarded to other similar-stage
molecular diagnostic organizations. So, we launched Exosome Sciences as
a stand-alone entity and hired the best-known researchers in the
exosome field to unlock the value of our technology and build an
expansive pipeline of urine and blood based diagnostic products.
Q: Investorideas.com
Can you explain to investors what Exosomes are and how they play a role in cancer diagnostics and treatment?
A: Jim Joyce, Chairman and CEO
Sure, but I would first like to share that when we first initiated
our exosome research programs, the vast majority of the medical
community considered these particles to be nothing more than cellular
debris with no biological function. In fact, at the time only a handful
of labs were thinking about the role of exosomes. Today, it appears our
early entry into the field may pay off as the medical community clearly
recognizes that exosomes are vital therapeutic and diagnostic targets.
In fact, there are now industry conferences and associations dedicated
solely to exosome research.
As it relates to the exosome-related objectives of Aethlon Medical,
we utilize our Hemopurifier® to target the elimination of circulating
tumor-secreted exosomes as an adjunct therapy to improve cancer
treatment outcomes. Our strategy addresses a significant unmet medical
need as researchers have discovered that exosomes suppress the immune
system of cancer patients and they facilitate tumor growth, seed the
spread of metastasis, and contribute to drug resistance. Our hope is
that exosome elimination saves lives by tipping the therapeutic balance
in favor of the patient.
In regards to the diagnostic focus of our Exosome Sciences
subsidiary, we are advancing exosome-based tools to better diagnose and
monitor the progression of cancer and other life-threatening disease
conditions. As it turns out, exosomes transport markers specific to the
origin disease into bodily fluids, including the blood and urine where
they can be easily assessed. Our objective is to introduce non-invasive
liquid biopsies that can provide for the earliest detection or
recurrence of cancer and other diseases. Our lead product is an assay
that we named ELLSA. So far, ELLSA has been validated to identify the
presence of exosomes underlying the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV),
tuberculosis (TB), and various forms of cancer, including ovarian,
melanoma, and breast cancer.
Q: Investorideas.com
Exosome Diagnostics recently announced it entered into a collaboration agreement with Eli Lilly and Company (
LLY)
for biomarker discovery and validation using Exosome Diagnostics
proprietary EXO50 nucleic acid extraction kit. Eli Lilly will gain early
access to Exosome Diagnostics technology to help identify key gene
mutations and expression levels in blood that may be correlated with
drug response and disease recurrence.
Your core technology, the Aethlon Hemopurifer®, targets the rapid
elimination of infectious disease and cancer glycopathogens, including
exosomes from circulation. Can you tell us the synergies and benefits of
having both a therapeutic technology and a diagnostic division working
on such an important area of cancer research? And does having a
diagnostic and therapeutic division so tightly focused give your company
an edge?
A: Jim Joyce, Chairman and CEO
Excellent question. There is tremendous synergy as the advancements
of Exosome Sciences have the potential to become companion diagnostic
tools that determine when Hemopurifier® therapy should be administered.
As an example, an assay able to detect exosomes underlying breast cancer
might define the point when it would be appropriate to initiate
Hemopurifier® therapy. This same assay would then be useful in
monitoring patient response to therapy and could be utilized to optimize
the administration of the Hemopurifier® and other therapeutic regimens.
Q: Investorideas.com
You just reported the appointment of Dr. Douglas Taylor as Chief
Scientific Officer of Exosome Sciences, Inc. What does his background
bring to the table to help lead this new subsidiary?
A: Jim Joyce, Chairman and CEO
Dr. Taylor is the individual who first discovered tumor-secreted
exosomes and is a leading published author in the field. His knowledge,
expertise, and stature within the scientific community will be
instrumental in developing a product pipeline and establishing strategic
industry relationships.
Q: Investorideas.com
In closing, your company has achieved some significant milestones
recently for Aethlon Hemopurifer®. For investors new to the company, can
you give us the recent highlights?
A: Jim Joyce, Chairman and CEO
Since the beginning of the year, we have been extremely productive.
Beyond the formal launch of Exosome Sciences, we formed a team that won
a $22 million Department of Defense contract, we reported on positive
Hepatitis C (HCV) treatment outcomes from studies conducted overseas, we
expanded the potential indications of our Hemopurifier® in cancer, and
disclosed the issuance of new patents that further protect our
technologies.
However, the most significant milestone by far was FDA approval of
an IDE that allows us to initiate clinical studies of HCV patients in
the United States. While this took years of effort, the IDE approval
unlocks the opportunity to demonstrate the value of our Hemopurifier® on
the world’s most important clinical stage.
About Aethlon Medical (
OTCQB: AEMD)
Aethlon Medical creates innovative medical devices that address
unmet medical needs in cancer, infectious disease, and other
life-threatening conditions. Our Aethlon ADAPT™ System is a
revenue-stage technology platform that provides the basis for a new
class of devices the rapid, yet selective removal of disease promoting
particles from the entire circulatory system. At present, The Aethlon
ADAPT product pipeline includes the Aethlon Hemopurifier to address
infectious disease and cancer, and a medical device being developed
under a 5-year contract with DARPA to reduce the incidence of sepsis in
combat-injured soldiers. For more information, please visit
www.aethlonmedical.com.
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