NEW YORK, July 31, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- Crystal Research Associates, LLC announced today that it has issued an Executive Informational Overview(r) (EIO(r)) on South San Francisco, California-based CoTherix, Inc. (Nasdaq:CTRX). The full 64-page report can be found at www.crystalra.com.
CoTherix, Inc. ("CoTherix" or "the Company") is a biopharmaceutical company focused on licensing, developing, and commercializing therapeutic products for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. The Company's strategy is to in-license products or product candidates that are in mid- to late-stage clinical development. CoTherix currently markets Ventavis(r) (iloprost) Inhalation Solution, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December 2004 and launched in March 2005 for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in patients with New York Heart Association (NYHA) Functional Class III or IV symptoms (WHO Group I). PAH is a highly debilitating disease characterized by severe constriction of the pulmonary blood vessels, making it difficult for the heart to pump blood through the lungs to be oxygenated. Patients suffer from shortness of breath, fatigue, and have a marked limitation in their physical activities. Ventavis, a synthetic compound, is structurally similar to prostacyclins -- naturally-occurring molecules that cause the blood vessels to dilate. PAH affects approximately 50,000 patients in the U.S., with only an estimated 30% diagnosed and receiving treatment. To expand its product portfolio, CoTherix in-licensed fasudil on June 23, 2006 from Japan-based Asahi Kasei Pharma to develop the oral and inhaled forms as a treatment for PAH and chronic stable angina in North America and Europe. The intravenous form of fasudil is currently approved in Japan for the prevention of cerebral vasospasm in patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage. Fasudil is the only rho-kinase inhibitor that has been tested in clinical trials. With a unique mechanism of action, fasudil has shown promise as a therapy for the management of cardiovascular and pulmonary vascular diseases. CoTherix expects to conduct clinical trials to evaluate fasudil's therapeutic potential.
About Crystal Research Associates, LLC
Crystal Research Associates, LLC is an independent research firm that provides institutional-quality fee-based research to small and mid-cap companies. The Company's unique and novel product, the Executive Informational Overview(r) (EIO(r)), is free of investment ratings, target prices, and forward-looking financial models. The EIO(r) presents a crystal-clear, detailed report on a company (whether public or private) in a manner that is easily understood by the Wall Street financial community. The EIO(r) details a company's product/technology/service offerings, market size(s), key intellectual property (IP), leadership, growth strategy, competition, risks, audited financial statements, key events and other such fundamental information. Crystal Research Associates has offices in New York City, Delray Beach, Montreal, and Toronto. Crystal Research Associates has been compensated by the Company in cash of US$40,000 for its services in creating this report, for updates, and for printing costs.
Forward-Looking Safe Harbor Statement
Statements in this news release regarding future financial and operating results, future growth in research and development programs, potential applications of the Company's technology, opportunities for the Company and any other statements about the future expectations, beliefs, goals, plans, or prospects expressed constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any statements that are not statements of historical fact (including statements containing the words "will," "believes," "plans," "anticipates," "expects," "estimates," and similar expressions) should also be considered to be forward-looking statements. There are a number of important factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements, including: limited operating history, need for future capital, risks inherent in the development and commercialization of potential products, protection of the Company's intellectual property, and economic conditions generally. Additional information on potential factors that could affect results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in the Company's periodic reports, including Forms 10-K, 10-Q, 8K, and other forms filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") from time to time.
These statements, and other forward-looking statements, are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties. Crystal Research Associates, LLC assumes no obligation to update any of the forward looking statements in this release.