Recipient of National Medal of Technology and Pioneer in Interferon Research
YONKERS, N.Y., Sept. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Advanced Viral Research
Corp. (OTC Bulletin Board: ADVR) today announced that Dr. Sidney Pestka has
joined the Company's Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Pestka, a recipient of
the National Medal of Technology, brings decades of creative, pioneering
scientific achievements, especially in the fields of immunology and interferon
research, to the Company.
Dr. Pestka is currently Professor and Chairman of the Department of
Molecular Genetics, Microbiology and Immunology at Robert Wood Johnson Medical
School of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey; and is
chairman and chief scientific officer of PBL Biomedical Laboratories,
Piscataway, New Jersey. Previously he was at the Roche Institute of Molecular
Biology.
"The appointment of Dr. Pestka to our Scientific Advisory Board is a
singular honor for Advanced Viral Research Corp. and a great personal pleasure
for me," stated Shalom Z. Hirschman, M.D., President and CEO. "He is a
scientist's scientist. His prodigious research output, and his pioneering and
creative scientific accomplishments will serve as inspirations for the entire
scientific staff of Advanced Viral Research. Moreover, his vast experience in
pharmaceutical research, particularly on immunomodulation, should prove to be
enormously helpful to our scientific staff in the product development program
of our immunomodulator-type drug, Product R."
"Since the formation of the Company's Scientific Advisory Board in January
of this year, more than a half dozen scientists who are leaders in their
respective fields have been appointed," noted Eli Wilner, Chairman of the
Board of ADVR. "The addition of Dr. Pestka adds a new dimension of scientific
excellence to the team providing counsel to our research and development
activities."
Dr. Pestka is world renowned for developing interferons, the first
biotherapeutic agents. These protein effector molecules of the immune system
are now used clinically for treating a range of diseases, including hepatitis
B, multiple sclerosis and hairy cell leukemia. His work is the basis of
several U.S. and more than 100 foreign patents.
In a June 2002 White House ceremony, Dr. Pestka was honored as one of five
recipients of the National Medal of Technology for 2001. He received the
highest honor given in the United States to scientists and technological
innovators "for pioneering achievements that led to the development of the
biotechnology industry, to the first recombinant interferons for the treatment
of cancers, leukemias, viral diseases such as hepatitis B and C, and multiple
sclerosis; to fundamental technologies leading to other biotherapeutics; and
for basic scientific discoveries in chemistry, biochemistry, genetic
engineering and molecular biology from protein biosynthesis to receptors and
cell signaling."
The National Medal of Technology was established by Congress in 1980, and
is administered by the U.S. Department of Commerce. The medal recognizes
fundamental contributions that help commercialize technologies, create jobs,
improve productivity and stimulate the nation's growth and development. The
Under Secretary of Commerce, in a report to Congress, stated "The National
Medal of Technology, administered by the Office of Technology Policy, is
America's Nobel Prize. Awarded annually by the President, the Medal is our
Nation's highest award for technological achievement."
Dr. Pestka was inducted into the New Jersey Inventor's Hall of Fame in
1993. He has also received the Selman Waksman Award in Microbiology and the
Milstein Award from the International Society for Interferon and Cytokine
Research. He has served on the National Cancer Institute's Breast Cancer Task
Force, the Basic Pharmacology Advisory Committee of the Pharmaceutical
Manufacturers Association Foundation and is secretary, and former President,
of the International Society of Interferon Research.
Dr. Pestka received his undergraduate degree in chemistry from Princeton
University in 1957 and his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania
School of Medicine in 1961. Over the past 30 years, he has published several
books and written more than 400 research articles for prestigious
peer-reviewed scientific journals.
Dr. Pestka joins the other members of the Scientific Advisory Board which
includes: Shalom Z. Hirschman, M.D.; Ms. Carol Armenti (Center for Cervical
Health); Dr. George P. Canellos (Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer
Institute); Dr. James D'Olimpio (North Shore University Hospital and New York
University School of Medicine); Dr. Michael Harris (Tomorrows Children's
Institute for Cancer and Blood Disorders and UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School);
Dr. Mark H. Kaplan (NYU School of Medicine); and Dr. Howard Young
(world-renowned immunologist).
Product R Clinical Studies
Phase II U.S. Study
ADVR submitted an IND for the topical treatment of genital warts in 2001
and a Phase I safety study was successfully completed in healthy volunteers
with the current liquid formulation. In April 2002, the Company announced
that it had submitted to the FDA the results of the Phase I clinical trial
under this IND and no adverse comments concerning the Phase I results were
received from the FDA. The Company is now beginning Phase II clinical trials
by recruiting clinical sites to perform these studies in patients with genital
warts in the United States.
Israeli Clinical Studies
In June 2002, ADVR announced that it had received approval from the
Ministry of Health for three clinical studies in Israel. The three trials
include: a Phase I/II clinical trial with injectable Product R in patients who
have failed highly active antiretroviral therapy and require salvage therapy;
a Phase I clinical study for the treatment of body wasting (cachexia) in
patients with solid tumors; and a Phase I clinical trial for patients with
hematopoietic and lymphoid tumors, including acute lymphocytic leukemia,
Hodgkin's disease and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, who also manifest symptoms of
cachexia. The Company recently secured funds to move forward with these
clinical trials.
ADVR's Product R represents a biopolymer chemistry that possesses novel
immunomodulator activity. This peptide-nucleic acid, which to date has shown
no indication of human toxicity, appears to stimulate the proinflammatory
responses required to combat viral infections such as AIDS and human papilloma
virus and to dampen aberrant autoimmune-type inflammatory responses, such as
occur in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Therefore, Product R has been
termed a "switch-type" immunomodulator.
Product R is also being studied for the promise shown in its ability to
mitigate the toxic side effects of other drugs, including those used to treat
HIV infection and chemotherapeutic drugs employed in the treatment of cancers.
Advanced Viral Research Corp., based in Yonkers, New York, is a
biopharmaceutical firm dedicated to improving patients' lives by researching,
developing and bringing to market new and effective therapies for viral and
other diseases.
For further information regarding Advanced Viral Research Corp., please
visit our website at http://www.adviral.com .
Note: This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve
risks associated with clinical development, regulatory approvals, including
application to the FDA, product commercialization and other risks described
from time to time in the SEC reports filed by the Company. Product R is not
approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or any comparable agencies
of any other countries. There is no assurance that the Company will be able
to secure the financing necessary to continue and/or complete the clinical
trials of Product R or satisfy certain other conditions relating to clinical
trials including obtaining adequate insurance on terms acceptable to the
Company. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise the
information contained in this announcement whether as a result of new
information, future events or circumstances or otherwise.
Contact:
Charles Mayr
Mayr Communications
877-777-6010
mayrcomm@att.net
SOURCE Advanced Viral Research Corp.
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Related links:
http://www.adviral.com
CONTACT:
Charles Mayr of Mayr Communications,
+1-877-777-6010, mayrcomm@att.net, for Advanced Viral Research
Corp.
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