Ruggell, Liechtenstein, 17 February 2009, Pantec Biosolutions AG, a privately-owned company developing innovative technologies for transdermal drug delivery, today announced the expansion of its Scientific Advisory Board to include Prof. Rox Anderson, M.D., Jean-Luc Levy, M.D., and Prof. Robert Strohal, M.D. They join the Board’s existing members, Yogeshvar N. Kalia, PhD, and Prof. Holger Lubatschowski, PhD. Their presence will strengthen Pantec’s expertise in transdermal delivery of drugs through basis understanding of dermatology and skin biology.

Dr. R. Rox Anderson is a professor at Harvard Medical School, an adjunct professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and director of the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. After graduating from MIT, Dr. Anderson received his M.D. degree from Harvard. He conceived and developed dermatologic surgery using selectively-absorbed laser pulses, which is now the preferred basis for treatment of birthmarks, pigmented lesions, tattoos, hypertrichosis and other conditions. He has made many contributions to the understanding and development of laser-tissue interactions, tissue optics, photodynamic therapy, optical diagnostics and laser based transdermal drug delivery.

Dr. Jean-Luc Levy has over 20 years of experience in the field of health technology, specifically for laser application in dermatology and cosmetology, and is the inventor of an ablative fractional C02 laser device called Exel02, which is manufactured by Quantel Derma in Germany (CE marked, FDA 510k pending). Dr. Levy opened the “Centre Laser Dermatologique” in Marseille in 1999, where he has conducted extensive clinical research on prototypes or new devices and the development of imaging methods to assess skin hyper-pigmentation. His research is funded by public grants and through industrial collaborations. Dr. Levy has published approximately 25 papers and currently serves on the Editorial Boards of the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology (US) and the Journal of Cosmetic Laser Therapy (EU); he is also a reviewer for several journals in the imaging and laser dermatologic fields.

Dr. Robert Strohal is Associate Professor and board-certified dermatologist and Head of the Department of Dermatology and Venerology at the Federal University Teaching Hospital Feldkirch, Austria. In addition to serving as an external expert for various research and funding programs associated with the European Commission (EC), Dr. Strohal is Board Secretary of the European Association of Dermato-Oncology, delegate of the Austrian Society of Dermatology and Venerology at the UEMS in Brussels, President of the Austrian Wound Association and chair of the Austrian Task Force “Biologics in Dermatology”. Dr. Strohal and his department are involved in several multinational clinical trials (biologics and psoriasis, topical immuno-modulators and atopic eczema, adjuvant melanoma therapy) as well as leading various investigator-initiated studies and a European EC-funded concerted action. Publishing in the field of clinical dermatology, immuno-dermatology, infection control and dermato-oncology, he has received eight national and international scientific awards. 

Professor Dr. Holger Lubatschowski currently heads the Department of Biomedical Optics at the Laser Center Hanover (LZH) in Germany. Since 2003, he has been the CEO of Rowiak GmbH, a spin off company of the LZH, which develops ultrafast laser systems for applications in life sciences. His major research interests are application of ultrashort laser pulses in ophthalmic surgery and intracellular surgery. Dr. Lubatschowski provides Pantec Biosolutions with scientific expertise  on laser-tissue interactions, which are key elements in laser development strategy.

Dr. Yogeshvar N. Kalia completed his PhD in Chemistry at the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine in London and is currently Senior Lecturer in the Laboratory of Medicinal Chemistry at the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Geneva, Switzerland. His group’s research interests include: (i) developing new formulations to increase topical and transdermal drug delivery, (ii) evaluation of new technologies for delivery of low and high molecular weight therapeutics into the body, (iii) development of minimally-invasive technologies for the transdermal delivery of macromolecules and (iv) the modification of drug structure and molecular properties to increase transdermal transport. He has published approximately 80 scientific papers, presented more than 90 abstracts at international conferences and is a co-inventor on four patents. Dr. Kalia is an expert in active transdermal systems and provides Pantec Biosolutions with hands-on expertise in the delivery of large molecular weight drugs.

“Now that our novel transdermal delivery technology is demonstrating clinical effectiveness for drugs that were previously administered parenterally, especially in infertility treatment, we feel it is the right time to expand the Scientific Advisory Board in order to gain more understanding and know-how of the basics of microporation controlled delivery of drugs across biological tissues," said Christof Boehler, CEO of Pantec Biosolutions “We anticipate that the SAB will be most valuable in helping to reinforce the Company’s scientific capabilities and in selecting and guiding its product development programs.”

About Pantec Biosolutions and P.L.E.A.S.E.^®
Pantec Biosolutions AG is a private drug delivery company specialised in using laser microporation technology to deliver large molecular weight drugs into the epidermis for local or systemic uptake. Its proprietary P.L.E.A.S.E.^® (Painless Laser Epidermal System) platform enables efficient, needle-free and painless administration of biopharmaceutical drugs, in varying and individualised dosages, through partnered patch technology. The technology is currently in clinical trials for the delivery of IVF hormone therapy, a market with an estimated value of US$1.5 – 2 billion.

Pantec Biosolutions’ P.L.E.A.S.E.^® platform is available both for the development of the Company’s own pipeline and for penetration into new markets through strategic partnerships. Pantec Biosolutions is based in Ruggell, Liechtenstein.

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