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What is the Best Solar Panel System for Home?

Solar panels are one more technology for powering your apartments. In brief, it works like this:

you put a panel on the top of your building;
the sunlight hits it;
the device transforms it into electricity.

It sounds great, but it’s not that simple. First, you have to invest in buying and installing the technology. And even when everything is already installed, it’s not a given that you’ll be able to switch to solar power fully.

But you are able to make the most out of the building in a solar panel system. To achieve this goal, you must pick it correctly. In the text below, we will consider all the subtleties.

The Most Important Features of Solar Systems

The parameter that you will most likely pay attention to in the first place is the cost. However, on its own, it has no bearing on how good this particular model is. Nevertheless, the relationship “the more expensive – the better” is still traceable. But here, we would like to focus on what “being better” means for the solar cell.

The best solar panels for home are the most efficient. Efficiency, in that event, is determined by that:

the device takes the maximum quantity of sunlight;
the device transforms it into the maximum quantity of electrical energy.

The quantity is revealed as a percentage and is calculated in the laboratory as a stage in the construction of batteries. It is tested under standardized limitations, which for solar panels are as follows: a hot sunny day, illumination of 1000 W/m2, temperature 25 degrees Celsius.

The average number is about 15%. The maximum (currently on the market) is 25%. However, you have to remember that not all areas have such a hot and sunny day all the time, especially if you live not in LA. Besides, efficiency is affected by factors such as shade and placement of the device on the roof. If trees surround your house, you placed the panel flat, not on a slope, and on the north side, it will receive less sunlight and, therefore, transform less electric energy.

What are the Types of Solar Panels

Apart from external factors, the productivity of solar systems is directly affected by their design. It’s all about the fact that the main material that is able to absorb solar energy is silicon. But only high-priced models are made entirely of monolithic silicon. They are called monocrystalline and have the greatest efficiency since they do not have particles that are not made of silicon.

Slightly less productive designs are called polycrystalline. They, too, contain a lot of silicon, but they have gaps where the individual elements are bonded to each other.

Thin-film solar cells are the least powerful. They are created from other, cheaper elements and are coated with silicon only on top.

Best Solar Panel System Brands

The best brand in the market right now is called LG. It takes the first spot of all the tops because of its productivity. This brand offers models with an average rate of 22%. Also, Panasonic and SunPower are listed among the good companies.

Company Overview

The Company Overview

Contacts

Riku Rautsola, PhD
President and Chief Executive Officer
[email protected]

Gerard Fleury,
EVP and CFO
[email protected]

Gary McGarrity, PhD
EVP Scientific and Clinical Affairs
[email protected]
Address
VIRxSYS Corporation
200 Perry Parkway, Suite 1A
Gaithersburg, MD 20877
United States

Telephone
301-987-0480

Fax
301-987-0489

Year Founded
1998

Financial Summary
Fundraising and Strategic Outlook
The Company has raised more than $80 million in six previous private equity rounds of financing since 1999, through Signature Capital Securities, LLP. The most recent round of fundraising will fund the Company through the completion of Phase II clinical trials for VRX496, a novel gene delivery therapy for HIV.

Company Profile
The Company, founded in Gaithersburg, Maryland, in 1998, is a private biotechnology company whose mission is to develop gene-based therapies using its proprietary lentiviral vector-based delivery system. The first application of the Company’s novel gene delivery technology has been for the treatment of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. After a successful first-in-class Phase I clinical trial that demonstrated the safety profile of the Company’s product VRX496, this new ex-vivo anti-HIV treatment using a lentivector is currently being evaluated in the first and only Phase II clinical trial approved by the FDA involving a lentiviral vector. The Company’s lentiviral vector platform is an ideal delivery system for the effective treatment of disease. The Company’s vector technology is also being investigated for applications in anti-cancer therapies and for the treatment of other various life-threatening diseases.

Technology
The Company has developed a proprietary HIV-based lentiviral vector platform for delivery of genetic therapeutic payloads. Its first product, VRX496, for treatment of HIV, may offer the patients a long-term alternative to antiretroviral drug regimens. Traditional drug regimens are toxic and produce drug resistance strains of HIV. The Company believes that its therapy is non-toxic and solves the resistance issue thus enabling patients to live drug free. This has the potential to represent a significant improvement in the quality of life for people with HIV compared to that with the current antiretroviral drug treatments. The Company’s manufacturing capabilities are unparalleled in terms of large-scale clinical grade vector production and cell processing (including purification of vector, and transduction and expansion of patient cells). The Company has developed a stable cell line, which will make clinical grade vector production more compatible with commercialization. The Company has several therapies in preclinical development that apply the Company’s technology to the treatment of other diseases, such as cancer.

Company Milestones

VIRxSYS has taken proof-of-concept studies performed at The Johns Hopkins University, completed its Phase I clinical trials in humans, and has initiated Phase II clinical trials in less than seven years. Company milestones are as follows:

Date	Milestone
1998	VIRxSYS incorporated
1999	First round of fundraising completed
2000	Initial meeting with the FDA to discuss the VIRxSYS lentiviral vector, VRX496
2001
January 2001	Second round of financing completed
August 2001	Pre-clinical studies completed toward an Investigational New Drug (IND) application
September 2001	VIRxSYS Phase I protocol for VRX496 presented to the NIH Recombinant Advisory Committee (RAC) for public review
October 2001	VRX496 presented to the FDA Biological Response Modifier Advisory Committee (BRMAC) for formal protocol review
2002
April 2002	Third round of financing completed
August 2002	IND application submitted to the FDA for final review of VIRxSYS’s proposed Phase I clinical trial for VRX496
December 2002	VIRxSYS granted permission by the FDA to proceed with the Phase I clinical trial for VRX496 modified CD4 T cells as an anti-HIV therapy; this clinical trial is a first-in-class use of lentiviral vectors in humans for any indication
2003
January 2003	Final approval received from The Institutional Review Board (IRB) at the University of Pennsylvania for Phase I clinical trial to be held at that institution
July 2003	First patient in the Phase I clinical trial dosed with VRX496 modified CD4 T cells
2004
April 2004	VIRxSYS awarded $1.5 million by the NIH for construction of a cell processing center and completion of important safety studies for VRX496 insertion into CD4 T cells
July 2004	Fourth round of financing completed
July 2004	“Fast Track” status granted to VIRxSYS by the FDA for VRX496
September 2004	State-of-the-art cell processing center completed in Gaithersburg, MD
September 2004	Final patient of the Phase I trial dosed
2005
May 2005	All patients in the Phase I trial reached nine-month post infusion, the official end of the trial; participants continue to be monitored
September 2005	Phase II Trial to establish safety and tolerability of multiple infusions of VRX496 commenced
October 2005	Fifth round of financing completed
2006
July 2006	Multiple infusions of VRX496 completed for all patients receiving multiple doses in Phase II trial, demonstrating the safety and tolerability of multiple doses of VRX496
July 2006	Patient from Phase I trial shows safety of treatment and persistence of vector at three years post infusion
September 2006	Phase I/II Clinical trial commenced at the University of Pennsylvania to test the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of VRX496 in HIV-positive patients who are well-controlled by traditional drug regimens
September 2006	Phase I/II clinical trial approved for the treatment of HIV positive patients who are not on drug therapy, to be conducted at Harvard University, The University of Pennsylvania, and The University of Amsterdam; AIDS Clinical Trial Group funds received for clinical trial sites in the United States

Product Pipeline

VIRxSYS has developed a proprietary HIV-based lentiviral vector gene delivery system, from which the disease-causing aspects of the virus have been removed, leaving behind an efficient delivery vehicle.

In order to provide a therapy against HIV, VIRxSYS has equipped the vector with a long antisense sequence against the HIV envelope protein to create VRX496. The Company is currently evaluating VRX496, the first application of our lentiviral vector delivery platform, in Phase II clinical trials. The progress made in developing VRX496 has led us to begin development of other therapies to administer to patients via our lentiviral vector system.

Development of additional methods of administration will allow us to treat a broad range of serious human diseases. VIRxSYS is currently establishing three main approaches for administering therapies to patients via its lentiviral vector:

CD4 T cell Immunotherapy – In this process, lymphocytes are extracted from a patient, and those cells are purified to select CD4 T cells. The lentiviral vector containing a designated gene or other therapy is transduced (inserted) into the CD4 T cells. The T cells that are genetically modified by the lentiviral vector are reinfused back into the patient.
Current therapy application: VRX496 for HIV/AIDS
Hematopoietic Stem Cell – In this process, stem cells are extracted from a patient and the lentiviral vector containing a designated gene or other therapy is transduced (inserted) into the cells. The stem cells that are genetically modified by the lentiviral vector are reinfused back into the patient. These cells replicate and each of the progeny carry the modified genes.
Potential therapy application: Cancer
Direct Injectable – VIRxSYS is currently working on developing a method for direct injection of the lentiviral gene delivery vector.
Potential therapy application: Vaccine

VIRxSYS has various collaborations to develop additional therapies for HIV, cancer, and genetic diseases with The Johns Hopkins University, University of Pennsylvania, and private companies in the United States and Europe.

Investor Information

VIRxSYS has raised over $80 million through six rounds of financing thanks to the support of our investors. Without their continued support and enthusiasm, the Company would not be able to develop technology that delivers on the promise of genetic medicine, allowing for the treatment of serious human diseases.

Technology Advancement
VIRxSYS intends to develop technology internally, as well as acquire technology which fit an SSD strategy:

Strategic – must help us drive toward our mission
Synergistic – must take advantage of our core competency in lentiviral vectors
Disruptive – must provide a significant and unique therapeutic advantage

Business Model
VIRxSYS’s strategy is to develop gene therapy treatments for serious diseases and advance each of those therapies into the market along one of three avenues:

Exclusive licensing to, or partnering with, a major bio-pharmaceutical company
Non-exclusive licensing to a bio-pharmaceutical company, retaining co-promotion or co-marketing rights for the United States
Go-it-alone strategy whereby VIRxSYS will take the lead in sales, marketing and distribution

The “go to market” track will depend on a number of factors including, but not limited to:

Size of the market
Capital requirements to take to market
Complexity of the manufacturing and distribution channels
Strength of potential partners

Each disease indication will be evaluated to determine the most appropriate track.

Initial Market Opportunity
Conventional drug therapies for HIV-positive people in the industrialized world are estimated to be more than $6 billion. When ancillary medical costs are factored in, the cost of treating HIV/AIDS more than doubles to $13 billion each year. Despite the enormous cost of these treatments, toxicities inherent in the current antiretroviral drugs available make them undesirable for long-term use. Genetic medicine holds promise for well-tolerated, effective therapies to combat HIV.

In addition to HIV/AIDS, VIRxSYS is researching similar applications of the Company’s proprietary technology toward other life-threatening diseases such as cancer. With the National Institutes of Health estimating the cost of cancer to be close to $190 billion each year in direct and indirect medical costs and lost productivity, there is a clear need for innovative solutions.

These examples represent a significant opportunity to deliver on the promise of genetic medicine for the millions of people suffering from HIV/AIDS and cancer, and with the technology being researched at VIRxSYS, the Company is poised to do just that.

If you are interested in finding out more information about VIRxSYS, contact: [email protected]

Viral Vector Technology for Gene Therapy

Getting to the Root Cause of Disease
Gene therapy is the treatment of hereditary or infectious diseases by repairing or re-engineering the genome. The therapy’s goal is to treat the genetic cause of disease rather than merely treating the symptoms. The advantage of gene therapy over traditional treatments is the elimination or reduction of the toxic side effects that are commonly seen with drugs. Examples of diseases caused by genetic flaws include cancer (genetic flaws in genes that control cell growth), Parkinson’s disease (genetic flaw in a critical neuronal gene) and infectious disease (foreign genetic material invades human cells; i.e. HIV, and HCV).

Solving the Delivery Challenge
The field of gene therapy holds great promise, however, most of these promises have been unfulfilled due to challenges in developing a transport system capable of delivering genetic and therapeutic payloads into targeted cells efficiently, reproducibly, and permanently.

Vectors are vehicles that deliver genetic material into cells. Viral vectors use the backbone of viruses for this purpose. Viruses are very effective at getting into cells, so the first challenge is to remove the disease-causing elements from the virus and leave behind a natural delivery vehicle. VIRxSYS’s HIV-based lentiviral vector platform has achieved this goal and has also overcome other existing challenges, such as high-efficiency gene transfer, stable transfer of genetic material into dividing and non-dividing cells, and a reduced risk of immunogenicity and insertional oncogenesis (cancer). VIRxSYS created VRX496 for the first application of our vector against the target disease, HIV/AIDS. To see how VIRxSYS is using gene therapy to treat HIV click here to view an animation.

VRX496 is created by removing the disease components of HIV and inserting an anti-HIV therapeutic payload, called antisense. The Company has demonstrated that such a vector can inhibit HIV replication by more than 99% (Humeau 2004).

HIV infects human cells very efficiently and, consequently, a vector derived from HIV has these remarkable properties for efficient gene delivery. VIRxSYS has demonstrated that its HIV lentiviral vector can deliver therapeutic payloads into human cells with greater than 90% efficiency, which is remarkable compared with other gene therapy vectors that have reported an efficiency of 20-50%. VIRxSYS’ vector efficiency can be achieved in several important human hematopoietic cell types such as lymphocytes, hematopoietic CD34+ cells, monocyte-derived dendritic cells, and a panel of tumor cell lines.

VIRxSYS is the only company currently testing a lentiviral vector permitted for use by the FDA in Phase II clinical trials. To date, patients in the Company’s clinical trials have experienced no adverse events due to treatment, thus supporting the safety of the Company’s vector for applications in humans.

Advisory Boards

Medical Advisory Board
VIRxSYS has assembled a Medical Advisory Board comprised of experts in HIV medicine. The Medical Advisory Board offers guidance in the design and execution of the Company’s HIV clinical trials, and guidance in positioning VRX496. The members of the Medical Advisory Board include:

Member	Affiliation
Brigitte Autran, MD, PhD	Groupe Hospitalier Pitie-Salpetriere Paris, France
Steven Deeks, MD	University of California at San Francisco San Francisco, California
Carl June, MD	University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Christine Katlama, MD	Groupe Hospitalier Pitie-Salpetriere Paris, France
Daniel Kuritzkes, MD	Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts
Joep Lange, MD	Academic Medical Centre Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Julio Montaner, MD	British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS Vancouver, British Columbia
Robert Murphy, MD	Northwestern University Evanston, Illinois
Richard Pollard, MD	University of California at Davis Sacramento, California
John Sullivan, MD	University of Massachusetts Medical Center Worcester, Massachusetts
Andrew Zolopa, MD	Stanford University Stanford, California

Intellectual Property

VIRxSYS has developed an extensive portfolio of intellectual property which is protected by a combination of patents, trade secrets, and trademark law. Below is a summary of the Company’s parent patents in the United States. VIRxSYS also has many foreign counterparts in countries around the world.

Patent/Ser No.	Issue / Publication Date	Title
US 5,885,806	March 23, 1999	Methods to Prepare Conditionally Replicating Viral Vectors
US 6,114,141	September 5, 2000	Method to Express Genes from Viral Vectors
09/667,893	Filed September 22, 2000	Conditionally Replicating Vectors and Methods for Their Production and Use
US 6,168,953	January 2, 2001	Genetic Antiviral Agents and Methods for Their Use
US 6,207,426	March 27, 2001	Conditionally Replicating Viral Vectors and their Use
US 6,410,257	June 25, 2002	Method to Express Genes from Viral Vectors
US 6,498,033	December 24, 2002	Lentiviral Vectors
US 6,627,442	September 30, 2003	Methods for a Stable Transduction of Cells with HIV-Derived Viral Vectors
US 20040203017	October 14, 2004	High-Throughput Methods for Identifying Gene Function using Lentiviral Vectors
US 6,835,568	December 28, 2004	Regulated Nucleic Acid Expression System
US 20050123514	June 9, 2005	Increased Transduction Using ABC Transporter Substrates and/or Inhibitors
US 20060003452	June 30, 2005	Vector Packaging Cell Line
US 20050196381	September 8, 2005	Two-vector Complementary Systems for Generating Immune Responses
11/424,673	Filed October 20, 2005	Antibody Complexes
US 20050257277	November 17, 2005	Regulation of Transcription with a Cis-acting Ribozyme
10/587,437	Filed May 22, 2006	Transduction of Primary Cells

Manufacturing Facilities

VIRxSYS is the only company currently testing a lentiviral vector permitted for use by the FDA in Phase II clinical trials. Consequently, VIRxSYS is uniquely positioned to manufacture clinical-grade lentiviral vectors for therapies treating a wide range of life-threatening diseases.

VIRxSYS is initially focused on using lentiviral vectors in cellular therapies for HIV/AIDS.

VIRxSYS both manufactures clinical grade lentiviral vectors and performs cell processing for clinical trials at its Gaithersburg, Maryland facility. Our manufacturing facility includes two class 10,000 clean rooms for vector reproduction and patient cell processing. In addition, the company has a dedicated plasmid production room, a suite of quality control labs, and a variety of support rooms.

In addition to our manufacturing facilities, VIRxSYS has extensive research and devlopment facilites and capabilities dedicated to supporting the manufacturing and cinical trial initiatives, as well as to developing a pipeline of therapies for additional disease indications.