GAITHERSBURG, Md., Dec. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- MedImmune, Inc. (Nasdaq: MEDI) announced today that it continues to build upon its corporate initiatives to expand and expedite the development of its product pipeline by licensing rights to antibody-enhancing technologies. The latest technology agreements MedImmune has entered into are with BioWa, Inc. and Xencor, Inc. from which MedImmune has gained access to two different technologies that may enhance the effectiveness of monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) targeting cancer.

'As a leader in the biotechnology industry dedicated to advancing science for better health, MedImmune aims to maintain its competitive edge by investing in technologies that will help develop successful biopharmaceutical therapies,' commented Peter Kiener, D.Phil., MedImmune senior vice president, research.

'In the future, we plan to continue to be aggressive on the in-licensing and collaboration front in support of our strategic priority of elevating science and evolving our research and development governance,' said Edward T. Mathers, senior vice president, corporate development.

MedImmune's recent technology licensing agreements include:

Avidia, Inc. -- MedImmune intends to combine its growing expertise in the field of tyrosine kinase research with Avidia's Avimer technology to develop anti-cancer product candidates that may have several advantages over antibodies in terms of biological activity, tissue distribution, reduced immunogenicity and improved manufacturing efficiencies. The two companies are also collaborating on the development of anti-cancer products targeting cMET, a receptor tyrosine kinase found in high levels in certain cancer cells.

Avalon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. -- MedImmune and Avalon are using Avalon's proprietary drug discovery technology, the AvalonRx(R) drug discovery engine, to collaborate on discovery and optimization of small molecule therapeutic compounds for the prevention and treatment of debilitating disease.

BioWa, Inc. -- MedImmune licensed the right to use BioWa's POTELLIGENT technology as a method for maximizing the potential of therapeutic antibodies targeting cancer.

Seattle Genetics, Inc. (Nasdaq: SGEN) -- MedImmune in-licensed Seattle Genetics' antibody-drug conjugate, which utilizes the targeting ability of MAbs to deliver cell-killing payloads to specific cells.

Xencor, Inc. -- MedImmune licensed the right to use Xencor's XmAb(TM) proprietary engineered Fc domains in development of MAbs against select cancer targets.

About MedImmune, Inc.

MedImmune strives to provide better medicines to patients, new medical options for physicians, rewarding careers to employees, and increased value to shareholders. Dedicated to advancing science and medicine to help people live better lives, the company is focused on the areas of infectious diseases, cancer and inflammatory diseases. With more than 2,000 employees worldwide, MedImmune is headquartered in Maryland. For more information, visit the company's website at http://www.medimmune.com .

This announcement contains, in addition to historical information, certain 'forward-looking statements' regarding MedImmune's monoclonal antibody development programs. Such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and involve inherent risks and uncertainties, including factors that could delay, divert or change current expectations and could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from current expectations. In addition to risks and uncertainties discussed in MedImmune's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, no assurance exists that development efforts will succeed, that the antibodies will receive required regulatory approval or that, even if regulatory approval is received, the antibody products will be commercially successful. MedImmune undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise except as may be required by applicable law or regulation.

SOURCE MedImmune, Inc.