Avalon Pharmaceuticals to Present Data on AVN944 and Pre-Clinical Programs at AACR
March 30 2006 - 1:25PM
PR Newswire (US)
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: Tel: (212) 845-4274
DATASOURCE: Avalon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. CONTACT: Gary Lessing,
Executive Vice President and CFO of Avalon Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,
+1-301-556-9900, Fax: +1-301-556-9910, ; or Media: Wendy Lau,
+1-212-845-4272, or Investors: Jane Petrino, +1-212-845-4274, both
of Noonan Russo for Avalon Pharmaceuticals Web site:
http://www.avalonrx.com/
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