Executive Summary
The LINC Mission
LINC will become the antifibrosis company, with novel technology
for the diagnosis and treatment of significant fibrotic diseases of the
lung, pancreas, kidney, and other major organs.
It is LINC's mission to improve patients’ quality of life by
developing novel PTHrP-based diagnostics and innovative PTHrP
therapeutics for the treatment of fibrotic diseases of the lung,
including bronchopulmonary dysplasia in infants, as well as
patients with COPD/emphysema, asthma, and idiopathic
pulmonary fibrosis. It is also LINC's mission to meet the market
demand for improved treatment of fibrotic lung disease by
commercializing a new cost-effective alternative to current
methods of diagnosis and treatment.
Company Background
LINC was founded in February of 2004 as a spin-off from the
Research and Education Institute (REI) at Harbor-UCLA
Medical Center in Torrance, California.
Platform Technology
LINC is developing agents for the diagnosis and treatment of
fibrotic diseases based on pioneering discoveries by John
Torday, PhD, and Virender Rehan, MD, Professors of
Neonatology at REI. These critical technologies form the
foundation of our broad fibrotic disease treatment platform.
Strategy
LINC Pharmaceuticals will fill a unique niche in the marketplace
by treating substantial unmet medical needs in the management of
lung disorders through a combination of diagnostics and
therapeutics that leverage LINC’s proprietary application of
PTHrP and PPAR-gamma technologies.
LINC is currently defining and qualifying its corporate partner
targets. One of the classes of drugs that is effective in treating
fibrotic diseases is currently used in the treatment of diabetes.
Several other compounds in this class are in late-stage clinical
development for diabetes. LINC intends to approach companies
with drugs in this class for an exclusive worldwide license to
proprietary compounds for the treatment of fibrotic disease.
LINC does not intend to conduct drug discovery in its early
years, but will concentrate on the clinical development of drugs
that have already been launched or are in late stage clinical
development for other indications. This will significantly reduce
the time to first product launch by LINC, compared to companies
that undertake drug discovery.
In addition, LINC will define and qualify another group of
potential partners (some of whom may be in the group of
potential drug licensors) as potential clinical development
partners. LINC will identify companies that are active in the
treatment of pulmonary diseases and will approach them early
in the clinical development cycle.
Partnerships and Collaborations
LINC is currently defining and qualifying its corporate partner
targets. The Company has also begun negotiations with REI on a
Cooperative Development Agreement that will provide laboratory
space in which to conduct SBIR research to support the Company’
s preclinical and clinical development programs.
Milestones for 2004
• Obtain exclusive world-wide rights to the Torday-Rehan technology
and related improvements (completed)
• Draft the LINC Pharmaceuticals Business Plan (completed)
• Establish a LINC Pharmaceuticals Web site (completed)
• Complete the Management Team and Board of Directors (ongoing)
• Establish the LINC Advisory Board (ongoing)
• Establish a Development Agreement for laboratory space (ongoing).
• Qualify potential drug source partners and open negotiations (ongoing)
• Define and qualify potential clinical development partners (ongoing)
• Submit SBIR grant applications to support LINCs preclinical and
clinical development of drugs for fibrotic disease (ongoing)
Financing & Alliances Desired
LINC is currently seeking financing to conduct preclinical studies,
formulation development, and Phase I studies in fibrotic lung
disease. LINC will also aggressively seek a proprietary drug from
those companies active in the identified compound class(s), as well
as a partnership with a pharmaceutical or biotechnology company
to bring a first-in-class drug to the market for the treatment of
fibrotic lung disease.
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