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Genetronics Biomedical - using electroporation therapy to make cell walls of tumors more permeable to better deliver drugs and genes

Healthcare
Medical Equipment & Supplies
(AMEX: GEB)

Genetronics Biomedical Corporation

Avtar Dhillon
Chief Executive Officer

Interview conducted by:
Walter Banks
Co-Publisher

CEOCFOinterviews.com
October 2002

Company Profile:
Genetronics Biomedical Corporation is a drug delivery company. They specialize in developing technology and hardware, which potentially will allow physicians more efficiently and cost-effectively to deliver life-saving drugs or beneficial genes to patients with catastrophic illnesses, including cancer. Genetronics is the technology leader in electroporation, the application of very brief, carefully controlled, pulsed, rotating electric fields to human cells, a process that causes pores to open in the cell membrane and allows pharmaceuticals or genes to gain access to the cell’s interior. The therapy allows chemotherapeutic drugs (drugs that otherwise cannot enter the cell effectively) to accumulate inside the cell at relatively high concentrations and kill the cancerous cells. The amount of drug used per treatment is much lower than in conventional chemotherapy.

Its proprietary MedpulserŽ delivers "square wave" pulses which are more effective than "exponential decay" pulses for the electroporation of cells in the human body. In addition, the Medpulser^Ž is programmed to deliver pulses to multi-needle electrode applicators in certain patterns and with different polarities to maximize electroporation efficiency. The Medpulser^Ž allows physicians treating oncology patients with Electroporation Therapy to control the electric pulses with a foot pedal, thus freeing the physician’s hands to apply the electrode applicators to the tumor.

Electroporation is a broad-based technology, with many ways to achieve commercial success. Genetronics is developing applications for this technology in the primary areas of oncology and gene therapy. They have completed Phase I and Phase II clinical trials in the United States for the treatment of head and neck cancer. The Company has a strong patent portfolio of 216 patents approved or pending, a formidable barrier to competition.

In gene therapy, Genetronics has multiple collaborations with major biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies for the use of electroporation for gene delivery. Genetronics BTXŽ Division, a leader in molecular delivery, features electroporation and electrofusion technology for research laboratory markets worldwide. Electroporation equipment has one of the fastest growing markets of all laboratory products. It is used in experiments involving animal cloning and gene therapy.

Genetronics, BTX instrument division now offers seven electroporation and electrofusion instruments and more than 22 accessories that are sold in 40 countries where over 2,000 universities and research laboratories continue to use BTX products as an integral part of their research. Some of these BTX instruments are multi-purpose, capable of accommodating a wide range of parameters to help researchers conduct experiments in novel areas. Others are reliable laboratory "work-horses," which help researchers achieve consistent, reproducible results.

Other applications for Genetronics electroporation therapy includes intradermal and transdermal delivery of drugs, DNA or cosmetic substances. Programs include treatments to combat pain, erectile dysfunction, skin damage and osteoporosis.

Interview Highlights:

- How did Genetronics have its beginnings and who was its founder?
- When did they go public?
- How does its flagship therapeutic technology, electroporation work?
- What is the name of their instrument division and into what markets are they currently selling their products?
- What are their recent sales numbers?
- What are some of the applications for their electroporation therapy and on what diseases are they currently conducting studies?
- Have they entered Phase III studies yet?
- Is electroporation applicable in treating diseases in animals?
- Who are some of the companies with whom they have done collaborations?
- What were the results of their Phase II studies?
- What are the advantages of using electroporation therapy over common treatments options?
- What drug have they used their electroporation therapy with in their clinical studies and why did they select that drug?
- Can the use of electroporation therapy be effective in reducing the side effects of chemotherapy drugs?
- What other clinical studies do they have in the works?
- What is the name of their medical grade instrument?
- What will be their sales and marketing strategy, once they get beyond their studies?
- How big is the market for treating head and neck cancer?
- Do they have the cash and credit to continue to build out their company?
- Has there been additional money that has been contributed through collaborations for research.

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