Targanta Therapeutics Corporation

Infobox_Company
company_name = Targanta Therapeutics
company_
company_type = Public (NASDAQ|TARG)
company_slogan = Conquering Bacterial Resistance
foundation = 1997 (as PhageTech Inc.)
location = Cambridge, Massachusetts
key_people =
num_employees = 82 [http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1398161/000119312507214302/ds1a.htm 9/24/07 per S-1]
industry = Biotechnology
revenue =
homepage = http://www.targanta.com/
products =

Targanta Therapeutics Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The company also has operations in Indianapolis, Montreal and Toronto. Targanta completed its initial public offering on October 9, 2007 [ [http://www.ipohome.com/marketwatch/iponews2.asp?article=6239 IPO News Archives] ] and trades on the Nasdaq market under the symbol: TARG.

Development Programs

Targanta’s lead product candidate is oritavancin, a novel, semi-synthetic glycopeptide antibiotic being developed to treat serious Gram-positive infections in the hospital and other institutional settings. Oritavancin was originally discovered and developed by Eli Lilly; Targanta acquired worldwide rights to oritavancin from InterMune in late 2005 [ [http://www.bioworld.com/servlet/com.accumedia.web.Dispatcher?next=bioWorldHeadlines_article&forceid=46239 Targanta Revives Oritavancin: Next Weapon Against cSSSI? BioWorld Today, November 26, 2007] ] . Data presented at the 47th Annual Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC) in September 2007 demonstrated that oritavancin possesses potent and rapid bactericidal activity "in vitro" against a broad spectrum of both resistant and susceptible Gram-positive bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococci, Clostridium difficile and Streptococci [ICAAC 2007 Posters: E-1612 “"In Vitro" Activity Profile of Oritavancin against a Broad Spectrum of Aerobic and Anaerobic Bacterial Pathogens”/E -1613 “"In Vitro" Activity Profile of Oritavancin (ORI) Against Organisms Demonstrating Key Resistance Profiles to Other Antimicrobial Agents”/E-1614 “"In vitro" Time Kill Studies of Oritavancin against Drug-resistant Isolates of "Staphylococcus aureus" and "Enterococci"”/E-1615 “Anti-Enterococcal Activity Profile of Oritavancin, a Potent Lipoglycopeptide under Development for Use Against Gram-Positive Infections”/E-1616 “Anti-Streptococcal Activity Profile of Oritavancin, a Potent Lipoglycopeptide under Development for Use Against Gram-Positive Infections”/E-1617 “"In Vitro" Activity Profile of Oritavancin (ORI) Against Resistant Staphylococcal Populations From a Recent Surveillance Initiative”/E-1620 “Pharmacokinetic Concentrations of Oritavancin Kill Stationary-Phase and Biofilm "Staphylococcus aureus" "In Vitro".” / [http://media.integratir.com/targ/PressReleases/TARG%20ICAAC%20In%20Vitro%20091907.pdf Targanta Press Release September 19, 2007] ] . Results have been presented but not yet published from two pivotal Phase 3 clinical trials testing the efficacy of oritavancin for the treatment of Complicated skin and skin-structure infections (cSSSI) caused by Gram-positive bacteria. The primary endpoints of both studies were successfully met, with oritavancin achieving efficacy with fewer days of therapy than the comparator agents (vancomycin followed by cephalexin). In addition, oritavancin showed a significantly improved safety profile with a 19.2 percent relative reduction in the overall incidence of adverse events versus vancomycin/cephalexin (p<0.001) in the second and larger pivotal trial [ICAAC 2003 Late-breaker poster: "Phase III Trial Comparing 3-7 days of Oritavancin vs. 10-14 days of Vancomycin/Cephalexin in the Treatment of Patients with Complicated Skin and Skin Structure Infections (cSSSI)" / [http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=100067&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=448643&highlight= InterMune Press Release September 15, 2003] ] .

Targanta has also developed a novel drug discovery platform to generate molecules that deliver antibiotics directly to the bone. Also at the 47th ICAAC meeting in September 2007, Targanta presented the first "in vivo" pre-clinical data on candidates from this program, demonstrating efficacy of its rifabutin-bisphosphonate prodrug (TT99000647) in a rabbit osteomyelitis model [ICAAC 2007 Poster “"In Vivo" Efficacy of a New Osteotropic Prodrug in a Rabbit Model of Chronic Osteomyelitis” / [http://media.integratir.com/targ/PressReleases/TARG%20ICAAC%20Osteo%20091907.pdf Targanta Press Release, September 19, 2007] ] .

enior Management

Mark Leuchtenberger [ [http://mba.yale.edu/alumni/alumni_leaders/leuchtenbergerm.shtml Yale School of Management Alumni Leaders] ] President, Chief Executive Officer and Director

George EldridgeSenior Vice President, Finance and Administration, Treasurer and Assistant Secretary

Pierre Etienne, M.D. [ [http://www.forbes.com/finance/mktguideapps/personinfo/FromMktGuideIdPersonTearsheet.jhtml?passedMktGuideId=1086912 Forbes.com Profile] ] Chief Development Officer

Tom Parr, Ph.D. [ [http://www.forbes.com/finance/mktguideapps/personinfo/FromPersonIdPersonTearsheet.jhtml?passedPersonId=1129532 Forbes.com Profile] ] Chief Scientific Officer

References