CARLSBAD, Calif., March 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Immune Response
Corporation (Nasdaq: IMNR), a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to treating
and preventing HIV and AIDS through the development of immune-based therapies,
announced today the start of a new HIV clinical trial in Canada. REMUNE, the
Company's lead product candidate, will be included in a study investigating
the ability of therapeutic HIV vaccination to delay rebound in plasma viremia
after scheduled interruption of antiretroviral therapy.
The three-arm, double-blind, randomized clinical trial will start early in
April and will run for more than 18 months. Sixty people with HIV from Ottawa
and Montreal, who have been on effective therapy and have had no detectable
HIV in their blood for at least two years, will be enrolled. The patients
will be recruited from three university hospital centers: The Ottawa Hospital,
the Centre hospitalier de l'Universite de Montreal and the McGill University
Health Centre. Additional product for the trial will be provided by Aventis.
"An effective therapeutic vaccine may help the person's immune system
control their HIV infection, potentially without the use of medications, and
provide important insights into the development of an effective preventive
vaccine," concluded Dr. Jonathan Angel, principal investigator for this trial.
Dr. Angel is a physician specializing in infectious diseases, Associate
Professor at the Faculty of Medicine, Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology
and Immunology of the University of Ottawa, and Scientist, Molecular Medicine,
Ottawa Health Research Institute.
"As a company dedicated to developing effective immune-based therapies
against HIV, we are pleased to be participating in this important trial in
Canada," said Georgia Theofan, Ph.D., Vice President of Clinical Development
at The Immune Response Corporation. "Using therapeutic vaccination to
potentially delay rebound of plasma viremia during antiretroviral treatment
interruption could be a way to provide HIV patients with a reprieve from the
toxic side effects of those drugs."
"We are pleased that REMUNE was selected for this study and hope the
results provide evidence of the value of therapeutic vaccines in the treatment
of HIV," said John N. Bonfiglio Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of The Immune
Response Corporation. "This Canadian trial is an important step in our
clinical plan, which will expand to include our newest product candidate,
IR103, in addition to ongoing studies with REMUNE. Our strategy to obtain
data on both products as quickly as possible will help us move toward
commercialization."
About The Ottawa Hospital (http://www.ottawahospital.on.ca)
The Ottawa Hospital is a multi-campus academic health sciences centre.
With over 1000 beds, 10,000 staff plus 1,200 physicians, and an annual
operating budget of approximately C$600 million, it is one of the largest
healthcare organizations in Canada. In collaboration with the Ottawa Health
Research Institute and the University of Ottawa, the Hospital is dedicated to
excellence in patient care, to the education of future healthcare
professionals, and to research resulting in bench-to-bedside discoveries. The
Ottawa Hospital partners with various organizations to provide comprehensive,
high quality, patient-focused healthcare services, in English and French, to
over 1.5 million residents of eastern Ontario, and specialized and complex
services for residents of northeastern Ontario.
About The Immune Response Corporation
The Immune Response Corporation (Nasdaq: IMNR) is developing immune-based
therapies (IBT) for HIV and select other disease states. REMUNE(R), the
Company's lead product candidate, is an immune-based therapy comprised of a
whole-killed virus coupled with an adjuvant. REMUNE(R), currently in Phase II
clinical trials, has shown promise inducing a specific immune response to HIV
and continuing investigation will help determine the clinical utility of this
therapeutic vaccine candidate. A new IBT product candidate, IR103, has shown
promise in early laboratory research against HIV, and further testing may
demonstrate potency as both a preventive and therapeutic agent.
While primarily focused on HIV, The Immune Response Corporation is
researching and developing an IBT for Multiple Sclerosis (MS). The MS
product, NeuroVax(TM), is currently in Phase II trials and has shown early
therapeutic value for this difficult-to-treat population.
Please visit The Immune Response Corporation on the World Wide Web at
http://www.imnr.com.
This news release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results
could vary materially from those expected due to a variety of risk factors,
including whether the Company will continue as a going concern and
successfully raise proceeds from financing activities sufficient to fund
operations and additional clinical trials of REMUNE(R), the uncertainty of
successful completion of any such clinical trials, whether REMUNE(R) will be
effective as either a preventive or therapeutic vaccine, whether future trials
will be conducted and whether the results of such trials will coincide with
the results of REMUNE(R), in preclinical trials. These risks, among others,
are set forth in The Immune Response Corporation's SEC filings including, but
not limited to, its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2003, and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. The Company undertakes
no obligation to update the results of these forward-looking statements to
reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the
occurrence of unanticipated events.
REMUNE(R) is a registered trademark of The Immune Response Corporation.
For further information please contact: media, Laura Silver, Sam Brown
Inc. Corporate Communications, +1-310-551-9940, silver@sambrown.com; or
investors, Kathy Waller of Financial Relations Board, +1-312-266-7800,
kwaller@financialrelationsboard.com, both for Immune Response Corporation; or
Michael K. Green, Chief Financial Officer of Immune Response Corporation,
+1-760-431-7080, info@imnr.com.
SOURCE The Immune Response Corporation
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Related links:
http://www.imnr.com
CONTACT:
media, Laura Silver, Sam Brown Inc. Corporate
Communications, +1-310-551-9940, silver@sambrown.com; or
investors, Kathy Waller of Financial Relations Board,
+1-312-266-7800, kwaller@financialrelationsboard.com, both for
Immune Response Corporation; or Michael K. Green, Chief Financial
Officer of Immune Response Corporation, +1-760-431-7080,
info@imnr.com
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