Health & Fitness
Health and Fitness
Health and Fitness
Fri, December 19, 2008
Thu, December 18, 2008 
SAN MARINO, Calif.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Luc Montagnier, co-winner of the 2008 Nobel Prize for Medicine and the co-discoverer of the HIV virus, has joined Viral Genetics (OTCBB: VRAL), a biotechnology company that discovers and develops immune-based therapies.
Montagnier joins a current team of esteemed advisors with diverse expertise to help guide Viral Genetics as it develops unique therapies for HIV and other diseases of the immune system.
Dr. Montagnier, Nobel Prize winner 2008 for his role in the discovery of HIV, said:
"While some preventive candidate vaccines failed to protect against HIV infection, and since there is no treatment able to cure the disease, it is important to come back to basic research and to explore new ways of research and treatment such as those explored by Viral Genetics. This is why I joined the Advisory Board of this Company."
The purpose of the Viral Genetics Advisors is to provide independent wisdom and insight to assist Viral Genetics in the accomplishment of its medical and scientific objectives by providing advice that is consistent with best-in-class scientific and medical practices and principles. Based on new information from ongoing AIDS and Lyme disease studies being led by head of research Dr. M. Karen Newell, PhD, new components of the mechanism of TNP, the Company's drug compound, have been identified. Viral Genetics continues to aggressively seek out the appropriate individuals in relevant fields to assist as the studies continue to move forward. These will include highly sought-after individuals in many diverse fields of research. The existing group and new advisors to be added have come together in an effort to spearhead Viral Genetics' promising new model of targeted peptide therapies for AIDS and other immune disease as swiftly as possible.
Dr. M. Karen Newell, head of Viral Genetics' latest research and discoverer of TNP's mechanism stated, "We are looking forward to the guidance of Dr. Montagnier in our efforts. He will not only help us in our research efforts, but also to identify experts in the studies of immune response genes and HIV, protein and peptide chemistry, cell death and apoptosis, pharmaco-genomics and computational biology. We look to augment our existing scientific advisory team with expertises that will strengthen and accelerate our ability to return to clinical trials - armed with a new and improved model, a newly identified potential mechanism of action, and a biologic product with characteristics of a novel, therapeutic vaccine strategy than has ever been tried in the past."
"It is indeed an honor and a privilege to have someone as world-renowned in the field of virology and AIDS research as Dr. Montagnier join our organization," said Viral Genetics President and CEO Haig Keledjian.
Dr. Montagnier is best known for his 1983 discovery of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which has been identified as the cause of AIDS. This discovery led directly to the development of a test for detecting the presence of HIV in blood samples. He has received more than 20 major awards, including the Commandeur de la Legion d'Honneur, the Lasker Award, the Gairdner Award, King Faisal Foundation International Prize(known as the Arab Nobel Prize),and this year's Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine awarded to him for the discovery of HIV.
He is the co-founder of the World Foundation for AIDS Research and Prevention and co-directs the Program for International Viral Collaboration.
As President of the World Foundation for Aids Research and Prevention, he has co-founded two centers for the prevention, treatment, research and diagnosis of AIDS patients in Ivory Coast and Cameroon.
Viral Genetics continues to study TNP, a mixture of peptides derived from thymic histones, to research HIV/AIDS. The results of six international human clinical trials of a TNP-based drug showed reduced viral load and clinical improvement. During subsequent in vitro research, the study group found that individual peptides in the TNP mixture can bind to antigen-presenting cells and may be able to redirect the immune response.
The study group has discovered, and will continue to search for, peptides that will bind with high affinity to the greatest number of molecules encoded by MHC alleles (genes) within a population. The MHC genes encode molecules that are expressed on antigen presenting cells. The group has finished preliminary studies, and is currently testing candidate peptides in a number of in vitro and in vivo animal models that it believes will provide proof-of-concept studies for both HIV as well as other diseases.
To uncover the mechanism of action responsible for improvement in previous international clinical trials of TNP, the active components had to be identified and synthesized to purity. The purified peptides then had to be, and will continue to be, tested for activity, safety, and efficacy. As a result, Viral Genetics has uncovered evidence for a likely mechanism of action using its targeted peptide approach. The goal of the study is to obtain an Investigational New Drug application for testing the newly identified and synthesized peptides or targeted peptides that can appropriately redirect the immune response to HIV.
"The incredibly hard and rigorous work that Dr. Newell and her team have managed to accomplish has answered the difficult questions of the mechanism and opened a new window into HIV/AIDS. As a result, we have been able to attract individuals like Dr. Montagnier, a Nobel Laureate and brilliant virologist to our team, something we could have only dreamed when we started on this journey years ago. It validates our work and clearly shows our progress into the research community," said Monica Ord, SVP of Corporate Development and Communications.
Dr. Montagnier will be joining the group of current esteemed advisors which include:
C. Everett Koop. In February 1981, President Reagan appointed Dr. Koop as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health. On January 1982, when he was sworn in by the Senate as U.S. Surgeon General, AIDS was a deadly enigma. At the direct request of President Reagan in 1986, Dr. Koop prepared the first national report on AIDS.
Dr Eric Rosenberg. Dr. Rosenberg has been co-chair, co-principal investigator, and principal investigator of clinical trials focused on HIV treatment, and has been the beneficiary of several NIH awards. Dr. Rosenberg is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, where he has been appointed in various academic capacities since 1995, and is a Staff Physician at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, where he has also been appointed since 1995.
Marshal Phelps who is currently Corporate Vice President for IP Policy and Strategy for Microsoft. In this position, Mr. Phelps is responsible for establishing global policy and strategy for Microsoft's intellectual property, and interfacing with governments and technology companies about intellectual property issues.
Richard Gerstner. Gerstner spent several years as President and CEO of Telular Corporation, a wireless communication company he took public in the 1990s. Prior to that, he spent 32 years at IBM in several capacities including 10 years as a Corporate Vice President during which he served as Chief Planning Officer, Head of the Asia/Pacific region located in Tokyo and Group Executive of IBM Personal Computers, and most recently as head of IBM's PC Group
Viral Genetics, Inc. is a biotechnology company that discovers and develops immune-based therapies for HIV and AIDS using its thymus nuclear protein compound (TNP). The company recently entered into an Exclusive License Agreement with the University of Colorado and V-Clip Pharmaceuticals (a subsidiary of the Company) to license technology developed by M. Karen Newell, PhD that appears to explain TNP and provide a means to optimize therapies based on TNP for future clinical trials. TNP may have other potential applications for other infectious, autoimmune, and immunological deficiency diseases that the company intends to study in the future. Viral Genetics believes that its investigational HIV/AIDS drug based on TNP, called VGV-1, represents a unique approach to treating HIV due to the apparently novel mechanism, low toxicity profile, simple dosing regimen, and short-course of treatment. As a type of immune-based therapy, it focuses on boosting the immune system to allow the body to fight HIV more efficiently. VGV-1 has been studied in five human clinical trials for the treatment of HIV/AIDS. More information is available online at [ www.viralgenetics.com ].
This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties associated with financial projections, budgets, milestone timelines, clinical development, regulatory approvals, and other risks described by Viral Genetics, Inc. from time to time in its periodic reports filed with the SEC. VGV-1 is not approved by the US Food and Drug Administration or by any comparable regulatory agencies elsewhere in the world. While Viral Genetics believes that the forward-looking statements and underlying assumptions contained therein are reasonable, any of the assumptions could be inaccurate, including, but not limited to, the ability of Viral Genetics to establish the efficacy of VGV-1 in the treatment of any disease or health condition, the development of studies and strategies leading to commercialization of VGV-1 in the United States, the obtaining of funding required to carry out the development plan, the completion of studies and tests on time or at all, and the successful outcome of such studies or tests. Therefore, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking statements included in this release will prove to be accurate. In light of the significant uncertainties inherent in the forward-looking statements included herein, the forward-looking statements should not be regarded as a representation by Viral Genetics or any other person that the objectives and plans of Viral Genetics will be achieved.
