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ViroStatics: a strategic partnership to develop new antiretroviral drugs

Antiviral drugs 
13.07.2010
Vichem Chemie is a Hungarian biotech research company focusing upon the field of kinase inhibitors, one of the fastest growing segments within the pharmaceutical industry with applications in oncology, autoimmune diseases and other unmet medical needs.

ViroStatics has brought the first-in-class AV-HALT, VS411, into Phase II development. AV-HALTS are a new class of drugs that combine direct anti-viral activity with a reduction in the chronically elevated immune system activation that is now known to play a major role in the progression of HIV disease, ultimately leading to AIDS.

"We are extremely pleased to be working with Vichem Chemie to discover valuable new AV-HALTSdrugs", explained Franco Lori, MD, President and CEO of ViroStatics. "Vichem's expertise, know-how and credibility in the area of in vitro discovery of novel drug families are well-known. Our new partnership brings together both companies’ substantial intellectual properties and significant libraries of Kinase Inhibitors".

"The expertise of ViroStatics in translating basic discoveries into clinical applications – from the bench to the bed side – is well appreciated", added Gyorgy Keri, PhD and CEO of Vichem Chemie. "The Companies' strengths are both complimentary and synergistic. We look forward to a successful partnership to identify new and exciting compounds that ViroStatics will develop into important new therapies against HIV/AIDS and other chronic diseases".

"The new class of AV-HALTSrepresents a novel approach to the treatment of HIV based upon the most recent discoveries in the field of viral pathogenesis", said Richard B. Pollard, MD, Professor of Medicine and Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases, University of California Davis Health System. "ViroStatics was the first to achieve Proof-of-Principle for the AV-HALTS with the two-drug combination product, VS411. The collaboration between ViroStatics and Vichem Chemie is expected to lead to the second generation of AV-HALTS where both antiviral activity and reduction of excessive immune activation are combined in a single molecule".

Contacts
ViroStatics
Porto Conte Ricerche
Science and Technology Park of Sardinia
S.P. 55 Porto Conte-Capo Caccia Km 8.400
Loc. Tramariglio, 07041 Alghero (SS) - Italy
Phone +39 079 998.642
Indirizzo emails.petrocchi@virostatics.com

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