- National
Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Finds Significant Antiviral Activity With Entry
Inhibitor SP-10
for Hepatitis C Virus (HCV)
- Oral"
Antiviral Entry Inhibitor SP-10
Appears to Prevent Virus
Entry Into Healthy Cells
- Aside
From HIV and the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV), SP-10's
Ability to
Prevent Viral Replication Could Extend to the Avian
Influenza
(Avian (bird) Flu), Avian Influenza A (H5N1), Influenza
A,
Influenza B, and the Hepatitis B Virus (HBV)
Samaritan
Pharmaceuticals Inc., a developer of innovative drugs, is
pleased to announce today that an in-vitro study conducted
on its oral entry inhibitor SP-10
by the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
(NIAID), found SP-10
to have significant antiviral activity with Hepatitis C Virus
(HCV) infection.
HCV infection is
estimated to affect approximately 4 million Americans. Approximately
8,000 to 10,000 deaths occur each year in the U.S. from complications
of hepatitis C. Without better therapies, the number of deaths
is expected to triple by the year 2015 -- higher than the
current annual death rate for AIDS.
Dr. Janet
Greeson, CEO of Samaritan Pharmaceuticals stated, ``Knowing
the Hepatitis C virus affects as many as 170 million people
worldwide, and is insidious in that it can take up to 20 years
to produce symptoms, we are extremely excited about SP-10's
potential as a viable antiviral treatment. We are also
very grateful to NIAID scientists for including Samaritan's
SP-10 in this study; and look forward to the further development
of SP-10, as an oral
entry inhibitor, for HIV and HCV.''
***
Samaritan Pharmaceuticals:
``We LIV...to Save Lives.''
Samaritan is a
small-cap Biotech, driven to discover, develop and commercialize
innovative therapeutics for AIDS, Alzheimer's, Cancer and
Heart disease patients. Look at http://www.samaritanpharma.com.
Please register on Website so we can notify you of upcoming
conference calls, news and events.
***
The company disclaims
any information that is created by an outside party and endorses
only information that is communicated by its press releases,
filings and Website. This news release contains forward-looking
statements that reflect management's current beliefs about
the potential for its drug candidates, science and technology.
However, as with any biopharmaceutical under development,
there are significant risks and uncertainties in the process
of development and regulatory review. There are no guarantees
that products will prove to be commercially successful. For
additional information about the factors that affect the company's
business, please read the company's latest Form 10-K/A filed
November 2, 2006. The company undertakes no duty to update
forward-looking statements.
Contact:
The Investor Relations Group
Investor Relations:
Adam Holdsworth
Erica Ruderman
Rachel Colgate
212-825-3210
Samaritan
Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Kristi Eads
702-735-7001
|
