Windtree and Eleison Announce Collaboration to Explore Delivering Inhaled Lipid Cisplatin (ILC) Utilizing Windtree's Aerosol Delivery System (ADS)

WARRINGTON, Pa., March 12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Windtree Therapeutics, Inc. (OTCQB: WINT), a biotechnology company focused on developing aerosolized KL4 surfactant therapies for respiratory diseases, and Eleison Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company developing life-saving therapeutics for rare cancers, today jointly announced a strategic collaboration to assess the feasibility of using Windtree's proprietary pulmonary aerosol delivery system (ADS) to deliver Eleison's inhaled lipid cisplatin (ILC) potentially in combination with Windtree's KL4 surfactant.

Eleison has an exclusive worldwide license to ILC, a novel, sustained release formulation of cisplatin in a nanoscale lipid-based complex administered via inhalation or intraperitoneally. ILC, when administered by inhalation, can deliver high levels of sustained release cisplatin targeted to the lung, with minimal systemic-related toxicities.  Eleison is developing ILC for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and completed a Phase II study of ILC in patients with bone cancer (osteosarcoma) metastatic to the lung.

Windtree has exclusive worldwide rights to the ADS, an innovative drug delivery technology designed to aerosolize KL4 surfactant (alone or in combination with other pharmaceutical compounds). The ADS has been demonstrated to produce high output aerosol volumes with consistent and controlled output rates, particle size, and other aerosol characteristics throughout extended KL4 surfactant dosing periods and is the medical device component of Windtree's AEROSURF® combination drug/device product candidate currently being studied in a phase 2 program for respiratory distress syndrome in premature infants. When used with ILC, the ADS technology may provide drug delivery advantages not possible with currently available devices and concomitant administration with KL4 surfactant may enhance local tolerability and drug delivery in the lung.

"ILC has characteristics that may enable more effective treatment of pulmonary malignancies and the ADS may augment those advantages. We are extremely excited about this research collaboration to explore the drug delivery potential of the ADS platform technology in areas beyond our RDS program in premature neonates," commented Steve Simonson, M.D., Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer. "It may also allow us to demonstrate that our KL4 surfactant can enhance treatment of other disorders in the lung."

About Windtree Therapeutics
Windtree Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing novel surfactant therapies for respiratory diseases and other potential applications. Windtree's proprietary technology platform includes a synthetic, peptide-containing surfactant (KL4 surfactant) that is structurally similar to endogenous pulmonary surfactant and novel drug-delivery technologies being developed to enable noninvasive administration of aerosolized KL4 surfactant. Windtree is focused initially on improving the management of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in premature infants and believes that its proprietary technology may make it possible, over time, to develop a pipeline of KL4 surfactant product candidates to address a variety of respiratory diseases for which there are few or no approved therapies.

For more information, please visit the Company's website at www.windtreetx.com.

About Eleison Pharmaceuticals
Eleison's mission is to acquire, develop, and commercialize clinical stage drug candidates for "orphan" oncology indications, providing new hope for patients with rare life-threatening diseases.  The Company has two programs in late-stage development, including ILC, and is also currently conducting a global Phase III clinical trial of glufosfamide in pancreatic cancer.  Eleison was founded in 2009 and is headquartered in Princeton, NJ.  Additional information about Eleison can be found at the Company's website www.eleison-pharma.com .

Forward-Looking Statements
To the extent that statements in this press release are not strictly historical, all such statements are forward-looking, and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made.  Examples of such risks and uncertainties include: the risk that, as a development company, with limited resources, Windtree's ability to fund its activities is highly dependent upon the success of its development activities and whether it is able to enter into strategic or financing transactions to support its operations; risks related to Windtree's  AEROSURF development program and other potential development programs (such as ILC), which may involve time-consuming and expensive pre-clinical studies and clinical trials and which may be subject to potentially significant delays or regulatory holds, or fail; risks related to the development, manufacture and assembly of aerosol delivery systems (ADS) and related components; and other risks and uncertainties described in Windtree's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission including the most recent reports on Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K, and any amendments thereto.

Contact Information:

Windtree Therapeutics
John Tattory
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
215.488.9418 or jtattory@windtreetx.com

Eleison Pharmaceuticals LLC
Corporate Communications
215-554-3530 or info@eleison-pharma.com 

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SOURCE Windtree Therapeutics, Inc.