RCS - Animalcare Group PLC - Acquisition of VHH NGF programme & related assets

AnimalcareAnnouncement

22/08/2025 07:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
https://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20250822:nRSV3420Wa&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 3420W  Animalcare Group PLC  22 August 2025

RNS Reach

Animalcare Group plc

("Animalcare" or the "Group" or the "Company")

 

Acquisition of VHH NGF programme and related assets from Orthros Medical

Acquisition delivers strategic value and unlocks full control of future
development

 

22 August 2025. Animalcare Group plc (AIM: ANCR) announces that it has
acquired the VHH NGF programme* and related assets under the licence agreement
previously signed with Orthros Medical in March 2022, which has subsequently
been terminated, for a cash consideration of €0.7m.

 

The current VHH NGF programme is researching the effectiveness of antibodies
in the treatment of pain caused by osteoarthritis in horses and dogs. The
assets under development could be complementary to Daxocox, the Group's COX-2
inhibitor approved for the treatment of osteoarthritis-related pain in dogs.
In the future, as a consequence of Animalcare now owning the assets,
additional programmes will be explored across a variety of species and
different diseases where NGF has a role.

 

The transaction offers value on two levels. Firstly, it provides the Group
with full ownership and control of the intellectual property and associated
assets, enabling independent development and commercialisation of the
technology across a range of indications and species, furthering the Group's
strategy to build a pipeline of innovative products. At the same time, the
outstanding significant future potential financial obligations under the
license agreement have been extinguished, which included development,
regulatory and commercial milestones and royalties due on net sales.

 

Together with the Group's new development partner, 272Bio, a highly
experienced and skilled biotherapeutics company specialising in VHH antibody
technology, Animalcare is making strong progress with the lead equine asset
from the VHH NGF programme, with early results reinforcing the Board's
confidence in the programme's potential.

 

Animalcare is continuing to advance antibody programmes to assess the
potential in additional species and new indications, which could give the
Group access to innovative products in some of the largest animal health
markets globally.

 

Jenny Winter, Chief Executive Officer of Animalcare Group plc said: "The
acquisition of the VHH NGF programme and new partnership with 272Bio represent
key building blocks in our long-term growth strategy, developing a pipeline of
innovative new treatments to meet evolving customer needs within the growing
global animal health market. Working with 272Bio, we have an exciting
opportunity to build our future pain portfolio while exploring further
potential opportunities with VHH technology in animals."

 

Enquiries

 

 Animalcare Group Plc                                                                                       +44 (0)1904 487 687

 Jenny Winter, Chief Executive Officer

Chris Brewster, Chief Financial Officer

Media/investor relations

                                                                                                            communications@animalcaregroup.com (mailto:communications@animalcaregroup.com)

 Stifel (Nominated Advisor & Joint Broker)                                                                  Tel: +44 (0)20 7710 7600

 Ben Maddison, Nicholas Harland, Francis North

 Panmure Liberum (Joint Broker)                                                                             +44 (0)20 7886 2500

 Corporate Finance - Freddy Crossley/Emma Earl

 Corporate Banking - Rupert Dearden

 Alma Strategic Communications                                                                              +44 (0)20 3405 0205

 Caroline Forde, Kinvara Verdon, Rose Docherty                                                              animalcare@almastrategic.com (mailto:animalcare@almastrategic.com)

 

About Animalcare

Animalcare Group plc is a UK AIM-listed international veterinary sales and
marketing organisation. Animalcare operates in seven European countries as
well as Australia, New Zealand and the UAE and exports to approximately 40
countries in Europe and worldwide. The Group is focused on bringing new and
innovative products to market through its own development pipeline,
partnerships and via acquisition.

 

For more information about Animalcare, please visit www.animalcaregroup.com
(http://www.animalcaregroup.com)

 

*VHH NGF programme

 

VHH antibodies are variable heavy chain antibodies (nanobodies) derived from
camelids, like Llamas and Alpacas, and offer new opportunities for the
research and development of innovative drug treatments for use in human and
animal patients. VHH antibodies feature significant therapeutic advantages
over other types of antibody. They are small, relatively easy to engineer,
have high specificity and can be quickly cleared from the system thereby
promising a good safety profile. VHH-based therapeutics have received
regulatory approval in the human health arena.

 

Nerve Growth Factor (NGF), a neurotrophic factor and neuropeptide, has been
shown to have a role in a wide range of immunological conditions, including
pain and inflammation.

 

This information is provided by Reach, the non-regulatory press release distribution service of RNS, part of the London Stock Exchange. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  NRAEAEPFALSSEAA