AVI BioPharma Presents Preclinical Data on Cholesterol-Lowering Program.Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers BIOWIRE2K PORTLAND, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 5, 2003 AVI BioPharma, Inc. (Nasdaq:AVII) announced today that it has presented preclinical data at the 24th annual meeting of the American College of Toxicology in Washington, D.C. The preclinical results indicate that AVI's compound lowered cholesterol without significant toxicity. The studies evaluated AVI's NEUGENE(R) antisense antisense, DNA or RNA manipulated in a laboratory so that its components (nucleotides) form a complementary copy of normal, or "sense," messenger RNA (mRNA; see nucleic acid). compound targeting HMG hMG menotropins (human menopausal gonadotropin). HMG abbr. human menopausal gonadotropin coenzyme A (CoA) reductase reductase /re·duc·tase/ (-tas) a term used in the names of some of the oxidoreductases, usually specifically those catalyzing reactions important solely for reduction of a metabolite. , a liver enzyme involved in the production of cholesterol. The preclinical research was conducted by AVI (Audio Video Interleaved) A Windows multimedia video format from Microsoft. It interleaves standard waveform audio and digital video frames (bitmaps) to provide reduced animation at 15 fps at 160x120x8 resolution. Audio is 11,025Hz, 8-bit samples. scientists Vikram Arora, Ph.D.; Patrick L. Iversen, Ph.D., AVI's senior vice president of research and development; and researcher Melissa L. Cate. Data presented at the conference showed that AVI's NEUGENE antisense compound reduced serum cholesterol in two separate studies by 45.6% and 43.7% compared to controls, with minimal toxicity. "These findings add to our previous work targeting cytochrome P-450 in the liver, and show how liver gene function can be positively impacted by AVI's NEUGENE technology," said Dr. Iversen. "Reducing the levels of HMG CoA reductase may help in the management of high cholesterol." HMG-CoA reductase is an important enzyme in the synthesis of cholesterol. The enzyme is the target of the highly successful statin drugs currently used for the treatment of high cholesterol. Statins Statins A class of drugs commonly used to lower LDL cholesterol levels. Mentioned in: C-Reactive Protein are not very well tolerated by some people, and toxicity has been serious in others. Because the distribution and toxicity profiles of AVI's NEUGENES are different from the statin drugs, AVI will continue to evaluate the possible usage of NEUGENES to lower cholesterol. About AVI BioPharma AVI BioPharma develops therapeutic products for the treatment of life-threatening diseases using two technology platforms: third-generation NEUGENE antisense drugs and cancer immunotherapy. AVI's lead NEUGENE antisense compound is designed to target cell proliferation disorders, including cardiovascular restenosis, cancer, and polycystic kidney disease Polycystic Kidney Disease Definition Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is one of the most common of all life-threatening human genetic disorders. . In addition to targeting specific genes in the body, AVI's antiviral program uses NEUGENE antisense compounds to target single-stranded RNA viruses, including West Nile virus West Nile virus, microorganism and the infection resulting from it, which typically produces no symptoms or a flulike condition. The virus is a flavivirus and is related to a number of viruses that cause encephalitis. , SARS coronavirus, calicivirus and hepatitis C. AVI's second technology, AVICINE(R), is a therapeutic cancer vaccine with late-stage trials planned for the treatment of pancreatic cancer. More information about AVI is available on the company's Web site at http://www.avibio.com/. "Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA) implemented several significant substantive changes affecting certain cases brought under the federal securities laws, including changes related to pleading, discovery, liability, class representation and awards fees and of 1995: The statements that are not historical facts contained in this release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the results of research and development efforts, the results of preclinical and clinical testing, the effect of regulation by the FDA FDA abbr. Food and Drug Administration FDA, n.pr See Food and Drug Administration. FDA, n.pr the abbreviation for the Food and Drug Administration. and other agencies, the impact of competitive products, product development, commercialization and technological difficulties, and other risks detailed in the company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings. |
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