Intercell's 9 month losses deepen 21.8%

Austrian vaccine developer Intercell AG says its net losses for the first nine months of 2006 increased 21.8% to 21.8 million euros ($27.9 million), up from the 17.9 million euro shortfall it saw in the comparable period in 2005. The firm said that the increase was largely a result of higher net operating expenses, which grew 18.8% to 27.8 million euros.

Intercell said that its increased R&D expenditure and sales, general and administrative costs, which were 24.6% and 18.3%, respectively, were due to Phase III trials of its JEV Japanese encephalitis vaccine. The company added that it has begun preparing a Biologics License Application for the agent for submission to the US Food and Drug Administration, and said that it expects to start clinical trials of the product in endemically-infected countries in 2007.

Intercell also reported that, in the third quarter of the year, it received two European Union grants. The first of these was 2.3 million euros in funding for the development of an otitis media vaccine (middle ear infection), while the second award, worth 3.5 million euros, will be used by the firm in its pandemic influenza project.