Neosil Acquires OsteoScreen’s Hair Technology, OSH 101

SOURCE:Feb. 16 /PRNewswire/

EMERYVILLE, Calif., -- Neosil, Inc., a privately held specialty dermatology company, announced today that it completed in-licensing of several hair growth products from OsteoScreen, Inc., a private company focused on drug discovery for bone diseases. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

" We are quite excited about the OsteoScreen products, one of which has already been in an early-stage human clinical trial in Europe," said Eugene Bauer, M.D., Neosil Chief Executive Officer. "This acquisition adds another topical product to Neosil's existing pipeline of topical anti-bacterial and anti-fungal programs and allows us to leverage our infrastructure to fully exploit complementary areas of competency and expertise, such as microbiology and formulations."

In connection with this in-licensing, Neosil announced that Gregory Mundy, M.D., OsteoScreen founder and Chief Executive Officer, has been appointed to its Board of Directors. A board-certified internist and endocrinologist, Dr. Mundy is Professor of Cellular and Structural Biology and Director of Orthopedic Research at the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio. He is internationally known for his work on osteoporosis and the skeletal complications of cancer. The recipient of a prestigious M.E.R.I.T. Award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Mundy has been an NIH- funded investigator for the past 30 years and has served on both initial review groups and on the Advisory Council of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. He is a member of numerous honorific societies, including the American Society for Clinical Investigation and the Association of American Physicians. He is the current President of the International Bone & Mineral Society.

" I have known and worked with Greg Mundy for many years through our common interests in connective tissue metabolism and through various NIH committees,"commented Dr. Bauer. "He brings an extraordinary depth of knowledge and breadth of experience to Neosil's Board in the cell biology of hair growth. Greg will be an outstanding colleague on Neosil's Board."

About Neosil, Inc. Neosil, Inc. is a privately held dermatology-focused pharmaceutical company that was funded in November 2004 with a $32 million investment by MPM Capital and Burrill & Company, following initial incubation funding by Shalon Ventures, LP. In addition to Dr. Bauer and Dr. Mundy, Neosil's current Board of Directors includes Nicholas J. Simon, III, General Partner, MPM Capital; Ashley Dombkowski, Ph.D., Partner, MPM Capital; Ann F. Hanham, Ph.D., Managing Director, Burrill & Company; and Teddy Shalon, Managing Director, Shalon Ventures.

About OsteoScreen, Inc. OsteoScreen Inc., a privately held biotechnology company located in San Antonio, Texas, was founded in 1988 as a joint venture with the University of Texas Health Science Center. The company focuses on the identification and clinical development of new drugs for common diseases of bone. To date OsteoScreen has raised over $35 million through corporate partnering, milestone payments and licensing arrangements with major pharmaceutical companies, including Rorer, Rhone-Poulenc Rorer, ZymoGenetics and Novo Nordisk.