Discovery work at our R&D facility in Boston, US continues to focus on anti-bacterial agents with a novel mechanism of action. The programme is now delivering candidates into the exploratory phase of development.

In January 2007, we announced the acquisition of Arrow Therapeutics Ltd, a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of small molecule, anti-viral therapies with a particular focus on hepatitis C.

In June 2007, the acquisition of MedImmune, Inc. expanded our infection R&D capability further by providing access to MAb and vaccine technologies.

These two transactions have been important strategic steps in strengthening our portfolio of anti-infective treatments and complementing our existing capabilities in anti-bacterials. They also fit with our decision to re-focus our disease area research, with infection now one of our key therapy areas. The acquisitions augment our portfolio with clinical and pre-clinical compounds and programmes. From Arrow Therapeutics, these include a novel anti-hepatitis C virus compound that targets the NS5a protein, AZD2836 (formerly A-831) in phase II.

In line with our announcement in November 2006, the development programme for CytoFab™, our treatment for severe sepsis licensed from Protherics Inc., has been expanded and delayed with the addition of a phase II study programme based on the recently completed new manufacturing methodology. Sepsis is a life-threatening condition resulting from uncontrolled severe infections, which affects an estimated three million people a year worldwide.

MedImmune
MedImmune’s industry-leading development of products to prevent paediatric respiratory infectious diseases is continuing. Various positive trial data have been presented during 2007 for its next-generation drug candidate, motavizumab (MEDI-524), a MAb targeting RSV disease. Data from a phase III study comparing motavizumab to Synagis were presented in May 2007 at the Pediatric
Academic Societies’ meeting in Toronto, Canada. In August 2007, a placebo controlled phase III study with motavizumab in full-term native American infants was unblinded due to encouraging preliminary efficacy data. MedImmune submitted a biologics license application (BLA) to the FDA for motavizumab early in 2008.

MedImmune is also developing a vaccine against RSV, which is in Phase I clinical trials.

Dedicated tuberculosis (TB) research
We are committed to making a contribution to improving health in the developing world. Backed by our skills and experience in infection research, we are working to find a new treatment for TB. We have a dedicated scientific resource in Bangalore, India that is focused on finding a new, improved treatment for TB that will act on drug-resistant strains, simplify the treatment regime (current regimes are complex and lengthy, meaning many patients give up before the infection is fully treated) and be compatible with HIV/AIDS therapies (TB and HIV/AIDS form a lethal combination, each speeding the other’s progress). Over 80 scientists in Bangalore work closely with our infection research center in Boston, US as well as with academic leaders in the field, and they have full access to all AstraZeneca’s platform technologies, such as high throughput screening and compound libraries. Finding a new treatment is a complex process, but we hope to have identified a candidate drug for testing in man within the next three to four years.