T-cell vaccine specialist Okairos named by FierceBiotech as one of the 2012 Fierce 15

BASEL, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--FierceBiotech today named Okairos as one of 2012's Fierce 15, designating it as one of the most promising private biotechnology companies in the industry. This is FierceBiotech's tenth annual Fierce 15 selection.

“We are delighted to achieve this recognition today and to be part of such an elite club of innovative biopharmaceutical companies as the 2012 Fierce 15”

“Okairos has vector technology that could enable the company’s genetic vaccines to combat major infectious disease threats such as hepatitis C, HIV and RSV,” says FierceBiotech Editor Ryan McBride. “There are no vaccines for these diseases, and Okairos dares to challenge the status quo in vaccine research.”

“We are delighted to achieve this recognition today and to be part of such an elite club of innovative biopharmaceutical companies as the 2012 Fierce 15,” said Dr Riccardo Cortese, chief executive officer and co-founder of Okairos. “Being selected by the expert editorial team at FierceBiotech provides further validation of our novel proprietary technology platform, harnessing the power of T-cells, which we believe will ultimately deliver effective vaccines against major infectious diseases for which none currently exist, such as RSV.”

The Fierce 15 celebrates the spirit of being "fierce" – championing innovation and creativity, even in the face of intense competition.

An internationally recognized daily newsletter reaching more than 100,000 biotech and pharma industry professionals, FierceBiotech provides subscribers with an authoritative analysis of the day's top stories. Every year FierceBiotech evaluates hundreds of private companies for its annual Fierce 15 list, which is based on a variety of factors such as the strength of its technology, partnerships, venture backers and a competitive market position.

The 2012 Fierce 15 companies will be recognized today at the BioPharm America conference in Boston. A complete list of "Fierce 15" companies – the online newsletter's tenth annual selection – is available online at www.fiercebiotech.com.

About Okairos

Okairos is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, developing genetic vaccines for major infectious diseases - including malaria, hepatitis C, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus and cancer - using a novel proprietary technology. The company is headquartered in Basel, Switzerland and has laboratories in Rome and Naples, Italy.

Okairos' technology platform is centered on the development of new, potent adenovirus vectors to generate a pipeline of T-cell vaccines against a range of infectious diseases for which there is currently no effective vaccine. The company is also pursuing therapeutic vaccines to treat cancer.

The company’s investors include BioMedInvest, Boehringer Ingelheim Venture Fund, LSP, Novartis Venture Funds and Versant Ventures.

For more information, visit www.okairos.com.

About FierceBiotech

FierceBiotech is the biotech industry's daily monitor - a free email newsletter and web resource providing the latest biotech news, articles, and resources related to clinical trials, drug discovery, FDA approval and regulation, biotech company deals and more. More than 90,000 top biotech professionals rely on FierceBiotech for an insider briefing on the day's top stories. Sign up is free at www.fiercebiotech.com.