OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Feb. 11, 2011) - PharmaGap Inc. (TSX VENTURE:GAP)(OTCBB:PHRGF) (“PharmaGap” or “the Company”) announced today that the Dr. Ken Sokoll, Vice President Clinical Development and Chief Operating Officer for PharmaGap, along with Dr. Barbara Vanderhyden of the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (“OHRI”), will be presenting results of testing of PharmaGap’s lead cancer drug in two separate poster sessions at the American Association for Cancer Research (“AACR”) 102nd Annual Meeting in April in Orlando, Florida.
The poster to be presented by PharmaGap is entitled “A Novel PKC inhibitor: Inhibition of Cell Proliferation in Cancer Cell Lines and Pharmacokinetics in Sprague-Dawley Rats”. This poster presents further evidence of the ability of GAP-107B8 to inhibit in vitro cell proliferation in various cancer cells. Using two different routes of administration (single bolus injection and continuous infusion) of GAP-107B8 to Sprague Dawley rats has enabled PharmaGap to gather the first pharmacokinetics data for GAP-107B8 following administration in animals. These data provide insight into important parameters such as the half-life, distribution, metabolism and elimination of GAP-107B8 when administered via the intravenous route.
The poster to be presented by the Barbara Vanderhyden lab at OHRI is entitled “Therapeutic Testing of a Novel Inhibitor GAP-107B8 on Ovarian Cancer Cells”, and is the product of the ongoing collaboration among Dr. Vanderhyden, the OHRI, and PharmaGap in developing GAP-107B8 for use in treating ovarian cancer. In addition to previously announced results from this program showing efficacy against ovarian cancer cell proliferation in both in vitro and in vivo models, the poster will present results indicating the effect of GAP-107B8 in inducing apoptosis (programmed cell death), in blocking or delaying progression of ovarian cancer cells through their normal cell cycle and in the reduction of average tumor size due to its therapeutic efficacy.
The AACR 102nd Annual Meeting 2011 will be held from April 2nd to 6th in Orlando, Florida. The AACR gives exhibitors the opportunity to gain visibility for their organizations among more than 18,000 scientists and other cancer professionals who are projected to attend from around the world, and is considered to be the premier networking event for specialists in all areas of cancer research.
About OHRI and Dr. Barbara Vanderhyden
The Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI) is the research arm of The Ottawa Hospital and is an affiliated institute of the University of Ottawa, closely associated with the University’s Faculties of Medicine and Health Sciences. The OHRI includes more than 1,500 scientists, clinical investigators, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and staff conducting research to improve the understanding, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of human disease. www.ohri.ca
Dr. Vanderhyden is a Senior Scientist, Cancer Therapeutics at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and a Professor in the Departments of Cellular & Molecular Medicine and Obstetrics & Gynecology at the University of Ottawa. She holds the Corinne Boyer Chair in Ovarian Cancer Research. She has published over 60 peer-reviewed journal papers primarily in the area of ovarian cancer and collaborates extensively with many pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies focused on the development of therapies for ovarian cancer.
About PharmaGap Inc.
PharmaGap Inc. (TSX VENTURE:GAP), based in Ottawa, ON, is a biotechnology company with a core focus on developing novel peptide therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. PharmaGap’s GAP-107B8 is a novel peptide drug that has been shown to be highly cytotoxic to numerous cancer types, including chemo-resistant cancers, in vitro. For more information on PharmaGap please visit the Company’s website at www.pharmagap.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This news release contains certain statements that constitute forward-looking statements as they relate to the Company and its management. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts but represent management’s current expectations of future events, and can be identified by words such as “believe”, “expects”, “will”, “intends”, “plans”, “projects”, “anticipates”, “estimates”, “continues”, and similar expressions. Although management believes that expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that they will prove to be correct.
By their nature, forward-looking statements include assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties that could cause actual future results, conditions, actions or events to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. If and when forward-looking statements are set out in this news release, PharmaGap will also set out the material risk factors or assumptions used to develop the forward-looking statements. Except as expressly required by applicable securities laws, the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. The future outcomes that relate to forward-looking statements may be influenced by many factors, including, but not limited to: results of ongoing product testing and development; regulatory approvals required to complete development of products; ability to manufacture product at quality and scale for human use on an economically sound basis; patient reimbursement by private and public health insurance programs; unintended side effects of products; competitive products; product liability; intellectual property; reliance on key personnel; risks of future legal proceedings; income tax matters; availability and terms of financing; distribution of securities; effect of market interest rates on price of securities, and potential dilution.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. No Securities Commission or other regulatory authority having jurisdiction over PharmaGap has approved or disapproved of the information contained herein. This release contains forward looking statements that may not occur or may change materially.
CONTACT INFORMATION: PharmaGap Inc. Robert McInnis President & CEO 613-990-9551 bmcinnis@pharmagap.com INDUSTRY: Pharmaceuticals and Biotech - Biotech
