BEVERLY, Mass., Jan. 16, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Innovation Pharmaceuticals, (OTCQB:IPIX) (“the Company”), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, is pleased to inform shareholders of a productive appearance by Innovation last week at leading health care meetings held in San Francisco, with an audio file of the Biotech Showcase presentation now available on the Company website.
Interest in the Brilacidin Franchise—based on the breadth of its treatment potential—was notable. Strong momentum gained as a result of Brilacidin’s recent positive topline findings seen in both Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) and Oral Mucositis (OM), coupled with previously successful results achieved in Acute Bacterial Skin and Skin Structure Infection (ABSSSI), has delivered a complementary cross-indication scientific anchoring for each Brilacidin indication in the Company’s pipeline.
In particular, Brilacidin-OM received an exceptional degree of attention at the San Francisco shows, further adding to an already robust partnering matrix. Innovation is developing Brilacidin-OM under a FDA Fast Track designation as a novel therapeutic and recently met the primary endpoint in a Phase 2 trial for preventing severe OM as well as a key secondary endpoint by delaying the onset of severe OM. Brilacidin has effectively earned a leadership position as an oral rinse drug candidate in OM—what many analysts predict will become a $1 billion market opportunity within the next few years.
“What must be stressed is that Brilacidin is a mature, later-stage drug candidate with platform potential. It took the recent completion of two Phase 2 trials, in IBD and OM, to further validate the exceptional results achieved from our Phase 2b study in ABSSSI. These recent data, taken in aggregate, are what various actively engaged pharmaceutical companies have desired from us for some time—and they are what triggered a newfound flurry of inbound partnership discussions at the San Francisco conferences,” commented Leo Ehrlich, Chief Executive Officer at Innovation Pharmaceuticals. “Datasets now in hand, reflecting three successfully completed Phase 2 studies across which multiple endpoints were met, have brought the Company to an important inflection point regarding Brilacidin. In coming weeks, we look forward to advancing these discussions with attractive partnership/licensing scenarios, towards determining the best path forward for the Company and its loyal shareholders.”
Biotech Showcase Event Recording
An audio file of the Corporate Overview given at 2018 Biotech Showcase, on January 8, in San Francisco, is now available and can be accessed on the Events and Presentations section of the Company’s website.
Brilacidin-OM (Phase 2 Trial Completed)
As announced earlier, the Company has completed a Phase 2 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial (see NCT02324335) evaluating Brilacidin’s ability, administered as an oral rinse, to prevent and attenuate OM in patients with Head and Neck Cancer (HNC) receiving chemoradiation with at least 55 Gy across 7 weeks. The study’s primary endpoint was met, with Brilacidin, as a preventative treatment, showing a clear reduction in the incidence of severe OM (SOM) (WHO Grade ≥ 3) compared to placebo. A key secondary endpoint in the trial, delaying the onset of SOM, also was met. The Company has begun exploring patient-friendly improvements to drug delivery (the use of sachets) and will be meeting with the FDA to determine next steps in the clinical development of Brilacidin-OM. Patents for Brilacidin-OM have also been granted globally, most recently in Europe. Worldwide, the potential market for OM, largely untapped, is estimated to be in excess of $1 billion, with the Company considered a top contender in this space.
About Brilacidin
Brilacidin is Innovation Pharmaceuticals’ lead drug candidate in its defensin mimetic franchise. Modeled after Host Defense Proteins (HDPs), the “front-line” of defense in the immune system, it is a small, non-peptidic, synthetic molecule that kills pathogens swiftly and thoroughly. Just as importantly, Brilacidin also functions in a robust immunomodulatory capacity, lessening inflammation and promoting healing. Due to its unique properties, the Company has been studying Brilacidin’s effect on Oral Mucositis (under Fast Track designation) and on Ulcerative Proctitis / Proctosigmoiditis (UP/UPS) in Phase 2 trials. Additional trials of Brilacidin are planned in other conditions, including: Atopic Dermatitis, Hidradenitis Suppurativa and Acne. Brilacidin is also being developed under FDA’s Qualified Infectious Disease Product (QIDP) designation as an antibacterial product for Acute Bacterial Skin and Skin Structure Infection (ABSSSI)—qualifying it for Fast Track and possible Priority FDA Review and an extra 5 years of United States market exclusivity upon drug approval.
Learn more here:
http://www.ipharminc.com/brilacidin-1/
About Oral Mucositis
Oral Mucositis (OM) is a frequent, painful and debilitating complication of chemoradiation. Head and Neck Cancer (HNC) patients—comprising an estimated 65,000 newly diagnosed cases in the U.S. alone in 2017, and an estimated 700,000 worldwide (source: GLOBOCAN)—are at the greatest risk of developing OM (a 90 to 100 percent rate of occurrence). By 2030, the global incidence of HNC cases is expected to exceed 1 million per year. Moreover, between 25 and 60 percent of cancer patients, regardless of cancer type, also will experience OM. Characterized by inflammation and ulceration, patients suffering from OM are often unable to speak and eat (requiring the insertion of a feeding tube) and are more susceptible to infections, with severe cases leading to hospitalization at increased treatment costs of up to $25,000. There currently are no approved medications for the prevention of OM in the HNC population, with only limited palliative care options available. Worldwide, the potential market for OM is expected to exceed $1 billion in the next few years.
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About the Company
Headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts, Innovation Pharmaceuticals Inc. (IPI) is publicly-traded under the company symbol “IPIX”. The Company is clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative therapies in multiple diseases. The Company believes it has a world-class portfolio of first-in-class lead drug candidates and is now advancing them toward market approval, while actively seeking strategic partnerships. The Company’s Psoriasis drug candidate Prurisol completed a Phase 2 trial and the Company has since conducted a Phase 2b study, with topline results expected in 1Q2018. Prurisol is a small molecule that acts through immune modulation and PRINS reduction. The Company’s anti-cancer drug Kevetrin successfully concluded a Phase 1 clinical trial at Harvard Cancer Centers’ Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and the Company has commenced a Phase 2 study in Ovarian Cancer. In the laboratory, Kevetrin has been shown to modulate p53, often referred to as the “Guardian Angel Gene” due to its crucial role in controlling cell mutations. Brilacidin, a defensin mimetic compound, has shown in an animal model to reduce the occurrence of severe ulcerative Oral Mucositis (OM) by more than 94% compared to placebo. The Company has recently completed a Phase 2 clinical trial with its novel compound Brilacidin-OM for the prevention of OM in patients with Head and Neck Cancer; topline results demonstrate a reduction in the incidence of severe OM (WHO Grade ≥ 3). The Company’s lead antibiotic, Brilacidin, has completed a Phase 2b trial for Acute Bacterial Skin and Skin Structure Infection, or ABSSSI. The Phase 2b data showed a single dose of Brilacidin to deliver comparable clinical outcomes to the FDA-approved seven-day dosing regimen of daptomycin. Brilacidin has the potential to be a single-dose therapy for certain multi-drug resistant bacteria (“superbugs”). Results are now available for the completed Phase 2, open label Proof-of-Concept trial, treating patients with Brilacidin for Ulcerative Proctitis/Ulcerative Proctosigmoiditis (UP/UPS), two types of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD). The Company has formed research collaborations with world-renowned research institutions in the United States and Europe, including MD Anderson Cancer Center, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and the University of Bologna. More information is available on the Company website at www.IPharmInc.com.
Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 including statements concerning projected timelines for the initiation and completion of clinical trials, our future drug development plans, other statements regarding future product developments, including with respect to specific indications, and any other statements which are other than statements of historical fact. These statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause the Company’s actual results and experience to differ materially from anticipated results and expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements. The Company has in some cases identified forward-looking statements by using words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “hopes,” “estimates,” “looks,” “expects,” “plans,” “intends,” “goal,” “potential,” “may,” “suggest,” and similar expressions. Among other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements are the Company’s need for, and the availability of, substantial capital in the future to fund its operations and research and development; including the amount and timing of the sale of shares of common stock to Aspire Capital; the fact that the Company’s compounds may not successfully complete pre-clinical or clinical testing, or be granted regulatory approval to be sold and marketed in the United States or elsewhere. A more complete description of these risk factors is included in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to release publicly the results of any revisions to any such forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by applicable law or regulation.
INVESTOR AND MEDIA CONTACT
Innovation Pharmaceuticals
Leo Ehrlich
info@IPharmInc.com
