ContraFect Announces Commencement Of Phase 1 Clinical Trial Of Cf-301 For Staph Bloodstream Infections, Including MRSA

YONKERS, NY--(Marketwired - April 29, 2015) -

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ContraFect

ContraFect Corporation (NASDAQ: CFRX) (NASDAQ: CFRXW) (NASDAQ: CFRXZ), a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of protein therapeutics and antibody products for life-threatening, drug-resistant infectious diseases, today announced that it has commenced screening of healthy volunteers in its Phase 1 clinical trial of CF-301. CF-301 is being developed to be used in combination with standard of care antibiotics for the treatment of Staph bloodstream infections, including infective endocarditis, caused by drug-sensitive and drug-resistant Staph aureus.

"ContraFect is pleased to announce this significant milestone for the Company and CF-301, our novel anti-Staph compound that has the potential to disrupt the treatment paradigm for drug-sensitive and drug-resistant Staph infections, including the MRSA superbug," said Julia P. Gregory, ContraFect's chief executive officer. "Our corporate mission is to bring much needed therapies to patients to help solve the world crisis associated with increasing drug-resistance. Advancing CF-301 into clinical development is an important first step."

ContraFect will be conducting a single Phase 1 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-ranging trial in healthy volunteers in the United States to evaluate the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of CF-301 alone in healthy volunteers. A data safety monitoring board will review the safety and pharmacokinetic data for each dose level and inform the company of its ability to proceed to the next higher dose. Additional information on the trial can be found at www.clinicaltrials.gov.

About CF-301

CF-301 is a bacteriophage lysin with potent activity against Staph aureus infections. CF-301 has the potential to be a first-in-class treatment for Staph bacteremia as it has a new mechanism of action for eliminating bacteria. It has specific and rapid bactericidal activity against Staph aureus and does not impact the body's good bacteria. By targeting a conserved region of the cell wall that is vital to bacteria, resistance is less likely to develop to CF-301. In vitro and in vivo experiments have shown that CF-301 clears biofilm. Combinations of CF-301 with standard of care antibiotics increased survival significantly in animal models of disease when compared to treatment with antibiotics or CF-301 alone. CF-301 was licensed from The Rockefeller University and developed at ContraFect.

About Staph Bacteremia

Staphylococcus aureus ("S. aureus") is a major cause of bacteremia, and S. aureus bacteremia is associated with higher morbidity and mortality, compared with bacteremia caused by other pathogens. The burden of S. aureus bacteremia, particularly methicillin-resistant S. aureus bacteremia, in terms of cost and resource use is high. The risk of infective endocarditis and of seeding to other metastatic foci increases the risk of mortality and raises the stakes for early, appropriate treatment.

Staphylococcus ("Staph") infections occur in both hospital and community settings, and in the United States there are approximately 120,000 cases annually of Staph bacteremia (a bloodstream infection), which causes approximately 30,000 deaths annually. Of further concern, drug-resistant strains of Staph are now evolving and developing additional resistance against standard-of-care antibiotics, which may ultimately result in increased number of cases and mortality from Staph bacteremia. A recent study commissioned by U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron found that without action, drug-resistant infections that already kill hundreds of thousands a year globally could exceed 10 million by 2050.

About ContraFect

ContraFect is a biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing therapeutic protein and antibody products for life-threatening, drug-resistant infectious diseases, particularly those treated in hospital settings. Due to drug-resistant and newly emerging pathogens, hospital acquired infections are currently the fourth leading cause of death in the United States, following heart disease, cancer and stroke. We intend to address drug-resistant infections using our therapeutic product candidates from our lysin and monoclonal antibody platforms to target conserved regions of either bacteria or viruses (regions that are not prone to mutation). ContraFect's initial product candidates include new agents to treat antibiotic-resistant infections such as MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus bacteria) and influenza.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as "projects," "may," "will," "could," "would," "should," "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "potential" or similar references to future periods. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts, nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based on ContraFect's current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of its business, future plans, strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent risks, uncertainties and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond ContraFect's control, including those detailed in ContraFect's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Specific forward-looking statements in this release include, without limitation, statements regarding anticipated screening and enrollment of healthy volunteers in our Phase 1 clinical trial for CF-301, our ability to develop therapies to combat drug-resistant infections, the effectiveness of CF-301, bacteria being less likely to develop resistance to CF-301, our ability to proceed with testing higher doses of CF-301 and the data obtained throughout the trial. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Any forward looking statement made by ContraFect in this press release is based only on information currently available and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Except as required by applicable law, ContraFect expressly disclaims any obligations to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.