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  • Anonymous
      Post count: 93172

      Tuesday August 25, 10:20 am Eastern Time

      Company Press Release

      GeneMedicine Receives Broad Gene Therapy Patents
      for Gene Delivery to Joints and to Intestines

      THE WOODLANDS, Texas–(BW HealthWire)–August 25, 1998– GeneMedicine Inc. (NASDAQ:GMED – news)
      announced today the issuance of two United States patents that broadly cover gene delivery to fluid spaces including joints
      and gene delivery to the intestines. The patent “Transfection of Cells Associated with Fluid Spaces” (U.S. 5,792,751) claims
      delivery of genes to fluid spaces including the synovium of joints, the thyroid gland, the vitreous humor of the eye and the inner
      ear. Gene therapy to joints may be useful in the treatment of rheumatoid or osteo arthritis. The patent “Gene Therapy Using
      the Intestine” (U.S. 5,786,340) claims gene delivery to the intestines by both viral and non-viral means including the delivery
      of gene medicines by mouth in the form of a capsule. This technology may be useful to deliver various genetic vaccines, which
      may be useful to prevent and possibly treat infectious organisms such as H. pylori and potentially certain cancers.

      These patents were awarded to Baylor College of Medicine of Houston, Texas (“Baylor”) and are exclusively licensed to
      GeneMedicine. Fred D. Ledley, M.D., a founder of GeneMedicine and president and chief executive officer of Variagenics
      Inc., and Bert O’Malley, Jr, M.D. of Johns Hopkins University, Department of Otolarynology, Baltimore, Md. developed the
      technology for gene delivery to fluid spaces when they were both at Baylor. Dr. Ledley and Susan Henning, Ph.D., developed
      at Baylor the method of gene delivery to the intestine.

      “These patents provide GeneMedicine’s present and future corporate partners with a strong intellectual property position that
      complements the Company’s substantial technology product development assets,” stated Norman Hardman, Ph.D., president
      and chief operating officer of GeneMedicine.

      GeneMedicine currently has rights to over 65 issued domestic and foreign patents, and 250 patent applications, covering key
      elements of gene therapy technology, including issued U.S. and European claims that broadly cover the use for gene therapy
      of any cationic lipid combined with DNA and administered by injection or inhalation, the most common routes of
      administration.

      GeneMedicine is a leader in the development of non-viral gene therapy products designed for the treatment or prevention of
      serious diseases. Gene medicines deliver genetic instructions to targeted cells in the body to produce therapeutic proteins or
      desired immune responses. The Company’s core technology includes lipid-, polymer-, and peptide-based gene delivery
      systems, each able to be applied to specific clinical targets, and gene expression systems to regulate the production of multiple
      genes. GeneMedicine technology is potentially applicable to the treatment of a wide variety of diseases and disorders because
      of its capability to deliver therapeutic genes to several tissue and cell types and to control the expression of desired proteins.

      Except for the historical information contained herein, this press release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results
      may differ materially. Factors that could cause or contribute to differences include continued scientific progress in its research
      and development programs, the costs involved in the filing, prosecuting and enforcing of patent claims, the scope and results of
      preclinical testing and clinical trials, the time and costs involved in obtaining regulatory approvals, competing technological
      developments, the cost of manufacturing and scale-up and effective commercialization activities and arrangements. These
      factors and others are more fully discussed in periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission including the
      Company’s Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1997.

      Contact:

      GeneMedicine Inc., The Woodlands
      Richard A. Waldron, 281/364-1150
      http://www.gmed.com

      Anonymous
        Post count: 93172

        Hi

        I have read this post about a dozen times and also checked out the web site, and I need some interpretation. This is the part that I am wondering about:

        “The patent “Transfection of Cells Associated with Fluid Spaces” (U.S. 5,792,751) claims delivery of genes to fluid spaces including the synovium of joints, the thyroid gland, the vitreous humor of the eye and the inner ear.”

        My question is whether or not there is a connection between the synovium of joints, the thyroid gland, the vitreous humor of the eye and the inner ear, or if it just happens those are the body parts they are working with.

        When I was 20, I had a synovial cyst about the size of a golf ball removed from my neck. Basically it was right in front of my thyroid gland, although at the time, nothing was said about it having any effect on my thyroid gland. The drs. didn’t have any explanation either, about how a cyst filled with synovial fluid ended up so far from any joints either. So, having read this post, I wonder if there is a connection, and if anyone else out there has had a similar experience.

        Thanks

        Cindy

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