DrugAbuse Sciences Announces Allowance of Its Claims by the USPTO to Immunogens and Antisera Against Cocaine.

SAN FRANCISCO--(BW HealthWire)--Sept. 8, 1998--DrugAbuse Sciences ("DAS"), the only company dedicated to providing products and services to the substance abuse field announced today that the United States Patent and Trademark Office had granted its claims to its protein cocaine conjugates for the production of antisera specific for cocaine.

The product, COC-AB(TM), specifically sequesters cocaine and cocaethyl in the blood and away from other compartments of the body. COC-AB finds use in the emergency room for the treatment of cocaine overdose and in preventing the effect of cocaine during detoxification and treatment.

COC-AB has been shown to selectively bind cocaine and cocaethyl at much higher affinity than benzoyl ecgonine, to selectively sequester the active drug. As shown in animal models, administration of COC-AB results in a lower level of cocaine in the brain and heart compartments and a higher level of cocaine, as the drug bound to COC-AB to form an inactive complex, in the blood. The complexes facilitate clearance of cocaine.

By reducing the level of active drug bound in the brain and heart, COC-AB inhibits the psychoactive effects of cocaine and cocaethyl and prevents the adverse cardiovascular effects, which can lead to death.

In the United States, there are over 140,000 cocaine related visits annually to the emergency room, which is over 30% of the total number of visits to emergency rooms. This number is low, since not all hospitals report drug related emergency room visits.

The conjugate was developed in conjunction with Professors Jean-Michel Scherrmann, Pierre Sandouk and Herve Galons of the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University Rene Descartes. Professor Jean-Michel Scherrmann is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of DAS, as well as a consultant to DAS, and supervises DAS' laboratory in Paris.

Bertram I. Rowland, Ph.D., J.D., president and CEO of DAS said, "It is very gratifying to have the Patent Office recognize the significant advance provided by the protein cocaine conjugate developed by DAS in conjunction with its academic collaborators and provide proprietary protection for DAS' development. "COC-AB is the result of many years of research and the preparation and evaluation of numerous conjugates."

DAS' novel protein cocaine conjugate provides for high affinity antisera for the intended targets, as contrasted to the numerous antisera and monoclonal antibodies which bind preferentially to the inactive metabolite, benzoyl ecgonine. COC-AB is presently in the preclinical stage and should begin clinical trials in 1999.

Early in 1998, DAS S.A., a French subsidiary of DAS Inc., received a grant of 16 million FF from the Ministre de le Recherche et de la Technologie ("MRT") to support the development of COC-AB.

The grant money will provide partial support for a pharmacokinetic laboratory DAS has established at the University Rene Descartes, the production of COC-AB, as well as clinical testing in France. The grant was given in recognition of the merit of the project in aiding in the treatment of drug addicts.

DAS is a specialty pharmaceutical company applying a disease management approach to the treatment of substance abuse. In addition to COC-AB, DAS is developing an injectable slow release naltrexone formulation for the treatment of alcoholism and heroin addiction, which will obviate the compliance problem of daily pill taking.

As these drugs progress, DAS intends to expand its efforts in the comarketing of other's drugs used in the treatment of substance abuse and the development of ancillary products in helping in preventing relapse and supporting prior addicts in being functional in society and at their workplace.

    CONTACT:  DrugAbuse Sciences, Inc.
               Bertram I. Rowland, 650/548-9257 (President & CEO)
               [e-mail]