BUSINESS WIRE
Expanded Testing under a Material Transfer Agreement with a Pharma
Company
WEST HAVEN, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NanoViricides, Inc. (OTC BB: NNVC.OB)
(the "Company"), reported today that testing of its topical eye drops
drug candidate has begun at two different, independent facilities.
Testing of this broad-spectrum, topical, eye drug candidate by a major
pharmaceutical company (“Party”) is now in progress. The Company had
previously announced in March that it had signed a Material Transfer
Agreement with this Party. In addition, the Company is also evaluating
this drug candidate against herpes keratitis of the eye at Thevac, LLC,
a spin-off of the Louisiana State University (Study Director, K. G.
Kousoulas, PhD).
The testing at the two facilities will independently evaluate
performance of this drug candidate against several types and strains of
many different viruses that cause keratitis or conjunctivitis of the
eye. Cell culture studies as well as animal studies with different
animal models have been planned.
“Execution of the material transfer agreement (MTA) is a step towards a
potential licensing agreement,” said Eugene Seymour, MD, MPH, CEO of
Nanoviricides, Inc. The terms of the agreement do not allow the
disclosure of the identity of the Party or the exact terms of the MTA.
HSV and some adenoviruses cause most of the cases of keratitis, a
serious infection of the cornea. Importantly, HSV infection can lead to
corneal scarring that may necessitate corneal transplantation. In
addition, some adenoviruses cause a majority of conjunctivitis cases
(“pink eye”). The remaining cases of conjunctivitis, caused by bacteria,
are treatable with topical antibiotics. Currently, there are no
effective treatments for viral diseases of the exterior portion of the
eye.
The Company has already demonstrated strong efficacy against an
adenovirus-caused external eye disease called epidemic
kerato-conjunctivitis (EKC). Rapid clinical improvement in the treated
animals was reported by independent researchers who tested the effects
of the nanoviricides drug candidate against adenoviral EKC. Based on
computer modeling, the Company believes that the broad-spectrum nature
of the ligand used in this nanoviricide should enable it to be effective
against HSV.
The total market for all forms of viral conjunctivitis/keratitis is
estimated to be in the billions of dollars. The incidence of severe
herpes (HSV) keratitis is estimated to be 250,000 cases per year in the
USA. In Japan, where EKC is a reportable disease, it is estimated that
there are at least one million cases per year. The number of cases of
non-specific conjunctivitis (pink eye) is considered to be far greater,
possibly into tens of millions in the US, and into hundreds of millions
worldwide.
About
NanoViricides:
NanoViricides,
Inc. (www.nanoviricides.com)
is a development stage company that is creating special purpose
nanomaterials for viral therapy. The Company's novel nanoviricide™ class
of drug candidates are designed to specifically attack enveloped virus
particles and to dismantle them. The Company is developing drugs against
a number of viral diseases including H5N1 bird flu, seasonal Influenza,
HIV, EKC, Hepatitis C, Rabies, Dengue fever, and Ebola virus, among
others.
This press release contains forward-looking statements that reflect the
Company's current expectation regarding future events. Actual events
could differ materially and substantially from those projected herein
and depend on a number of factors. Certain statements in this release,
and other written or oral statements made by NanoViricides, Inc. are
“forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements
since they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Company's control and which
could, and likely will, materially affect actual results, levels of
activity, performance or achievements. The Company assumes no obligation
to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any
reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially
from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new
information becomes available in the future. Important factors that
could cause actual results to differ materially from the company's
expectations include, but are not limited to, those factors that are
disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in documents
filed by the company from time to time with the United States Securities
and Exchange Commission and other regulatory authorities. Although it is
not possible to predict or identify all such factors, they may include
the following: demonstration and proof of principle in pre-clinical
trials that a nanoviricide is safe and effective; successful development
of our product candidates; our ability to seek and obtain regulatory
approvals, including with respect to the indications we are seeking; the
successful commercialization of our product candidates; and market
acceptance of our products.