News Article -- January 12, 2007

DVC Hosts First Lecture in New Scientific Seminar Series

On January 11, 2007, DynPort Vaccine Company LLC hosted the first lecture in its new DVC Scientific Seminar Series. Two executives from Medicago, a company that manufactures biopharmaceutical products using alfalfa and other plants, discussed their proprietary transgenic and transient platforms for expressing complex molecules in plants.

Mr. Andrew Sheldon, Medicago President and CEO, noted that Medicago is the only company that has built a pilot production plant capable of producing sufficient quantities for GCMP testing. The company owns what it refers to as “BL2+” greenhouses, which ensure that no transgenic plants are exposed to natural ecosystems. These greenhouses also ensure better regulatory compliance by providing a controlled environment.

Dr. Louis Vézina, Medicago Vice President of R&D, discussed the transient technology approach, noting that this type of protein expression is best when large volumes of product are needed rapidly for clinical and nonclinical testing. In contrast, the transgenic approach works best for manufacture of monoclonal antibodies. The transient technology approach is also non-infectious, easy to clean, highly reproducible and easily automated.

Medicago has successfully expressed several complex proteins and therapeutic molecules in plants, including Ig1, Ig2, Ig4, plague F1V and biologically active influenza vaccine. Traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol MDG, Medicago is based in Quebec City, Canada, and employs 37 people. For more information on Medicago’s plant-based expression technologies, visit www.medicago.com.