Lev Pharmaceuticals Licenses IVIG Technology.NEW YORK New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of -- Lev Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ("Lev") (OTCBB OTCBB See OTC Bulletin Board (OTCBB). : LEVP.OB), a developer of therapeutics for inflammatory diseases, announced today that the Company has entered into an exclusive license agreement with Dr. Hannu Suomela relating to methods for producing plasma-derived intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG IVIG Intravenous immunoglobulin, see there ). Dr. Suomela, of Vantaa, Finland, is the inventor of the underlying technology and holder of a pending U.S. patent application. IVIG is used to treat patients with certain immune system immune system Cells, cell products, organs, and structures of the body involved in the detection and destruction of foreign invaders, such as bacteria, viruses, and cancer cells. Immunity is based on the system's ability to launch a defense against such invaders. disorders, and North American sales of IVIG products currently exceed $1 billion. "We see IVIG as a product opportunity addressing multiple medical needs in a significant patient population," said Joshua D. Schein, Ph.D., the Company's Chief Executive Officer. "This agreement reflects our strategy of broadening our technology platform and expanding our pipeline with related products that are complementary to our existing technology platform and scientific expertise." IVIG is used to treat a range of diseases involving the immune system, including primary immunodeficiency disorders, chronic lymphocytic leukemia chronic lymphocytic leukemia n. Abbr. CLL Lymphocytic leukemia occurring mainly in older adults, characterized by slow onset and gradual progression of symptoms. , HIV HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), either of two closely related retroviruses that invade T-helper lymphocytes and are responsible for AIDS. There are two types of HIV: HIV-1 and HIV-2. HIV-1 is responsible for the vast majority of AIDS in the United States. , and certain autoimmune diseases. Primary immunodeficiencies are genetic diseases characterized by increased susceptibility to infection and affect as many as 50,000 individuals in the U.S. These disorders encompass more than 100 diseases, including common variable immunodeficiency Common Variable Immunodeficiency Definition Common variable immunodeficiency is an immunodeficiency disorder characterized by a low level of antibodies. Patients with this disease are subject to recurring infections. , X-linked agammaglobulinemia, and severe combined immunodeficiency Severe Combined Immunodeficiency Definition Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) is the most serious human immunodeficiency disorder(s). It is a group of congenital disorders in which both the humoral part of the patient's immune system and the cells . In these and other disorders, IVIG acts to restore function to the immune system in order to prevent or combat infection. About Lev Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Lev is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapeutic products for the treatment of inflammatory diseases. Lev's product candidates are based on C1-esterase inhibitor ("C1-INH"), a human plasma protein that mediates inflammation and is potentially applicable as a treatment for a range of medical indications. The Company is currently conducting a registrational Phase III clinical trial Noun 1. phase III clinical trial - a large clinical trial of a treatment or drug that in phase I and phase II has been shown to be efficacious with tolerable side effects; after successful conclusion of these clinical trials it will receive formal approval from the of its lead product candidate, C1-INH for the acute and prophylactic treatment of hereditary angioedema, a genetic disease affecting 6,000 or more people in the U.S. Lev is also evaluating the development of C1-INH for the treatment of acute myocardial infarction acute myocardial infarction (  ·kyōōtˑ mī·ō·karˑ·dē· , or heart attack, and selective other diseases and disorders in which inflammation is known or believed to play an underlying role. Patients and physicians interested in obtaining more information about Lev's Phase III trial for hereditary angioedema should contact the Company directly at 212-682-3096, or visit the Company's website at www.levpharma.com. Legal notice to investors: Certain matters discussed in this news release are "forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements, which apply only on the date of this release, generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "expects," "intends," "estimates," "anticipates," "believes," "continues" or words of similar import. Similarly, statements that describe LevPharma's future plans, objectives or goals are also forward-looking statements, which generally involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other facts that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of LevPharma to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors may include the following: uncertainties associated with product development, the risk that LevPharma will not obtain approval to market its products, the risk that LevPharma's products will not gain market acceptance, the risks associated with dependence upon key personnel and the need for additional financing. |
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