Expanding drug pipeline in Avexxin - adopting new chemistry

Since incorporation in 2005, Avexxin has had an ongoing development program on its lead compound, AVX001, against psoriasis, and the company is now at the brink of completing pre-clinical tox studies, which is prerequisite to enter into human trials. In a ccordance with Avexxin?s therapeutic strategy another original compound AVX002 is undergoing in vitro cellular testing both in RA and GN in order to establish if it is able to adequately inhibit GIVA PLA2 in these disease settings. Current application is founded on completion of previous contracts with NFR, including NFR, BIA contract 174396 Development of mechanism based, novel anti-inflammatory compounds, which runs to the end of 2008. As chemistry of new molecules of current chemical class is so cha llenging, a strategic decision regarding new chemical classes of molecules have been taken. Avexxin will include a new class of inhibitor molecules, and has identified the internationally most successful synthetic chemist making inhibitors for a range of lipases and phospholipase A2 enzyme, namely Prof. George Kokotos at University of Athens, and subsequently tested for the therapeutic properties by several other international collaborators.