12 January 2010

Pronota awarded EUR 1.4 million grant to validate and develop novel cardiovascular biomarkers

Ghent, Belgium; 12th January 2010 - Pronota NV, the Belgium-based protein biomarker diagnostics company, has announced that it has been awarded an EUR 1.4 million grant from IWT (the Institute for the Promotion of Innovation by Science and Technology in Flanders) to further validate and develop novel biomarkers for the management of heart failure.

Heart failure is the most common admitting diagnosis for patients over the age of 65 putting a tremendous burden on healthcare systems worldwide. Because of the aging population and more effective treatment of underlying conditions such as myocardial infarction (heart attack), the prevalence is on the increase. Pronota's biomarker program aims to develop novel diagnostic aids for this devastating disease.

The grant will be used to validate and biologically characterize in great detail novel candidate protein markers discovered using Pronota's proprietary MASStermind^TM platform. In addition, the grant supports the development of generic immuno-based assays for the lead candidates, which will be used for the final clinical validation in a large, multicenter, clinical trial and the regulatory submission.

Commenting on the grant, Dr Koen Kas, founder and CSO of Pronota said: "This award, which follows on the heels of the 2009 series B fundraising, totaling EUR 6.4 million, provides us with the means to address a significant clinical and commercial opportunity which should prove the era of clinical proteomics has finally arrived".

Notes to editors:

About Pronota

Pronota was founded in late 2004 to develop rationally discovered protein biomarker diagnostics. In this short time, it has successfully implemented its technology and generated a promising product development pipeline.

Pronota's next-generation protein biomarker discovery platforms enable rapid identification of candidates for drug development, and diagnostic products for more accurate diagnosis and personalised treatment of disease.

Further information is available at http://www.pronota.com.