GERMANTOWN, Md., March 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Avalon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq and ArcaEx(R): AVRX), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of small molecule therapeutics, today announced that it will present three posters at the 97th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), which is being held in Washington, DC, April 1-5, 2006.
“We are excited by the advancement of AVN944 into the clinic and the progress we are making with the Beta-catenin and Aurora kinase inhibitor programs, where we plan to identify two lead candidates for IND-enabling development studies by year-end,” stated Kenneth C. Carter, Ph.D., President and CEO of Avalon.
Two of the posters present information on Avalon’s biomarker program for the company’s lead clinical candidate AVN944:
-- The first poster, part of a collaboration with scientists from Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, is a description of Avalon’s biomarker discovery process where AvalonRx(R) is used across a panel of cancer cell lines and normal human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC’s) to identify biomarkers of response as well as markers for use in identifying patient populations that may respond to therapy. Poster 3125: Global gene expression effects of AVN944, a novel small molecule inhibitor of Inosine Monophosphate Dehydrogenase (IMPDH) (Experimental and Molecular Therapeutics 27, Monday, April 3, 2006 at 1:00 p.m.) -- The second poster presents ex vivo studies that validate the utility of these biomarkers by analyzing the effects of AVN944 in primary tumor isolates from leukemia patients. Poster 3124: Genetic response markers for IMPDH inhibition are conserved from in vitro cell lines to ex vivo treated primary samples from leukemia patients (Experimental and Molecular Therapeutics 27, Monday, April 3, 2006 at 1:00 p.m.)
Avalon’s pre-clinical programs involve Beta-catenin and Aurora kinase inhibitors:
-- The third poster illustrates how AvalonRx(R) can be used to discover therapeutics directed against challenging targets in these areas. Poster 1358: Biomarker-driven drug discovery: Identification and characterization of small molecule inhibitors against beta-catenin and Aurora kinase (Experimental and Molecular Therapeutics 10, Sunday, April 2, 2006 at 1:00 p.m.)
To view these posters in their entirety, please visit the What’s New section of Avalon’s website at http://www.avalonrx.com after April 3, 2006.
About Avalon Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Avalon Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of small molecule therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. Avalon seeks to discover and develop novel therapeutics through the use of a comprehensive, innovative and proprietary suite of technologies based upon large-scale gene expression analysis which it calls AvalonRx(R). This platform facilitates drug discovery by expanding the range of therapeutic targets for drug intervention, including targets and target pathways frequently considered intractable using conventional HTS approaches, allows more informed decisions about which compounds to advance towards clinical trials, and facilitates drug development through identification of biomarkers of efficacy that can stratify patients or provide early indicators of response. Avalon Pharmaceuticals was established in 1999 and is headquartered in Germantown, Maryland.
This announcement contains, in addition to historical information, certain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, in particular, related to progress in our drug discovery programs, the potential to expand Avalon’s cancer pipeline, the ability to take greater advantage of the AvalonRx(R) engine and clinical progress in the development of AVN944. Such statements reflect the current views of Avalon management and are based on certain assumptions. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated as a result of a number of factors, risks and uncertainties including the risk that the discovery programs and collaborations may not be successful, the cancer pipeline may not be expanded, Avalon may not be able to take greater advantage of the AvalonRx(R) engine and AVN944 will not progress successfully in its clinical trials, and other risks described in our SEC filings. There can be no assurance that our discovery and development efforts will succeed, that AVN944 will receive required regulatory clearance or, even if such regulatory clearance is received, that any subsequent products will ultimately achieve commercial success.
Contacts: Avalon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Noonan Russo Gary Lessing Wendy Lau (Media) Executive Vice President and CFO Tel: (212) 845-4272 Tel: (301) 556-9900 Fax: (301) 556-9910 Jane Petrino (Investors) Email: info@avalonrx.com Tel: (212) 845-4274
Avalon Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
CONTACT: Gary Lessing, Executive Vice President and CFO of AvalonPharmaceuticals, Inc., +1-301-556-9900, Fax: +1-301-556-9910,info@avalonrx.com; or Media: Wendy Lau, +1-212-845-4272, or Investors: JanePetrino, +1-212-845-4274, both of Noonan Russo for Avalon Pharmaceuticals
Web site: http://www.avalonrx.com/
