Syntopix believes its future can be spotless
SYNTOPIX, the company which is working to find treatments for acne and other skin conditions, today said it was upbeat about its future despite being in the red.
The Alternative Investment Market (AIM) drug discovery and development company, which is based at the University of Bradford, said it had signed its first commerial exclusive evaluation agreement with an unnamed major consumer healthcare company.
The company said it was also in advanced discussions with another company to evaluate the possibility of it taking on Syntopix’s products in another area of personal healthcare.
Syntopix, which is headed by husband and wife team Dr Jon Cove and Dr Anne Eady, said following successful trials of its acne treatment, which saw two of its preparations investigated – a compound used in cosmetic preparations and a bacteriostatic agent used in soaps – it intended to conduct another human case study this year.
Chief executive Stephen Jones said that following the success of its proof-of-concept study, it had been approached by several dermatological companies interested in the treatment.
It is hoped a licensing agreement can be reached with a suitable partner in the cosmetics or consumer healthcare industries, Mr Jones said.
He said Syntopix now had three granted patents and a further 12 patent applications for its compounds, which are also being used to investigate the prevention and treatment of other skin infections.
The company floated in March 2006 and has been using the £4m raised to accelerate its development and research into MRSA combating drugs as well as compounds for the treatment of acne and eczema.
For the six months to January 31 the company’s turnover was £36,666 compared to £2,500 for the same period the previous year.
Its pre-tax loss was £966, 207 compared to £770,432 for the corresponding period in 2007. Operating loss was up from £824,618 for the six months to January 31 2007 to £988,991 this time.
Total loss for the period was £894,207.
Mr Jones said: “I am pleased with the group’s progress over the last six months. We are expanding the use of our antimicrobial pipeline and are attracting commercial interest in new areas of consumer healthcare.
“Our Phase II proof of concept study yielded positive results, which has enabled us to progress discussions with several dermatological companies.
“I am also pleased to report that we signed our first commercial agreement in December 2007 with a major healthcare company and we have expectations for further commercial opportunities in the next 12 months.”
