Agenix Limited (ASX:AGX) Showcase Promising New Low-Risk Hepatitis Drug for China Market at Bio Korea 2011

Agenix Limited (ASX:AGX) confirmed its promising new hepatitis B drug, AGX-1009, shared the same active compound as Gilead's (NASDAQ:GILD) blockbuster drug, Viread, which is widely used to treat HIV and hepatitis throughout Asia.

Agenix Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Nicholas Weston told the Bio Korea 2011 conference in Seoul, "Our lead compound AGX-1009 is a 'prodrug' of the proven active substance Tenofovir but is activated by a different molecular side chain. In simple terms, this means AGX-1009 is significantly much less of a risk for us to develop and commercialise as it is based on a widely proven and used compound. It also potentially gives AGX-1009 Class I New Chemical Entity status and premium pricing in China once approved."

A prodrug is a compound administered in an inactive form then metabolised in the body into an active drug. Prodrugs are useful in targeting therapies to the right place in the body.

Tenofovir was approved for treatment of hepatitis B in the US by the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in 2008.

Bio Korea is one of the largest healthcare and biotechnology business events in Asia.

Mr Weston also highlighted the Company's innovative strategy to rapidly prove and commercialise AGX-1009 in a strategic alliance with the Institute of Medicinal Biotechnology (IMB) in China and other Asian countries where hepatitis is a national health problem.

"We believe Agenix has an opportunity to deliver a potentially beneficial treatment to millions of people with high unmet medical needs with a drug compound we believe has solid intellectual property and a long life cycle" he said.

Agenix and IMB are currently completing pre-clinical work in China and plan to begin a Phase I human clinical study of AGX-1009 in 2012.

A copy of the presentation has been lodged and is available on the ASX Website, www.asx.com.au and also http://www.agenix.com

About Agenix Limited

Agenix Limited (ASX:AGX) is a biopharmaceutical company based in Melbourne, Australia. Through its wholly owned subsidiaries, Agen Biomedical (headquartered in Melbourne, Australia) and Agenix Biopharmaceutical (in Shanghai, China), the Company has a strategic goal of building and developing a line of therapeutic and imaging products.

 

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