MALVERN, Pa., Nov. 10, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals Corporation (Nasdaq:TLOG) today announced additional results from preclinical studies that demonstrated the ability of the SMAC-mimetic, birinapant, to clear Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) in mouse models.
In studies performed by Dr. Marc Pellegrini and his colleagues at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, Melbourne, Australia, administration of birinapant to C57BL/6 mice hastened the clearance of HBV-DNA from blood and liver, and was associated with loss of HBV-surface antigen (HBsAg). Birinapant's effect occurred in a dose-related manner. This was associated with apoptosis of infected hepatocytes and transient elevation of liver transaminases. Normal hepatocytes were spared. The clearance of HBV-DNA was also seen with entecavir, and the two agents together were more effective than either agent alone. These results were confirmed using mice in which the targets of birinapant, the cIAPs, were ablated in the liver ("knock-out mice"). In C3H mice that do not spontaneously clear HBV, birinapant treatment resulted in loss of HBV-DNA, loss of HBsAg and the appearance of anti-HBsAg antibodies.
"These preclinical results provide a compelling rationale for TetraLogic's recently initiated clinical study in HBV" said J. Kevin Buchi, President and Chief Executive Officer of TetraLogic.
About the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research
The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research is Australia's oldest medical research institute. It is home to almost 750 researchers who are working to understand, prevent and treat diseases including infectious diseases, cancers and immune disorders. It is located in Parkville, Melbourne, and is closely associated with The University of Melbourne and The Royal Melbourne Hospital.
About TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals Corporation
TetraLogic is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing novel small molecule therapeutics in oncology and infectious diseases. TetraLogic has two clinical-stage product candidates in development: birinapant and SHAPE. Birinapant is currently being tested in Phase 1 and Phase 2 clinical trials for hematological malignancies and solid tumors, and is also being tested in a Phase 1b/2a clinical trial in hepatitis B. SHAPE is entering a Phase 2 clinical trial for early-stage Cutaneous T-cell Lymphoma.
Forward-Looking Statements
Some of the statements in this release are forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which involve risks and uncertainties. These statements relate to future events or TetraLogic's pre-clinical and clinical development of birinapant, SHAPE and other clinical programs, future expectations, plans and prospects. Although TetraLogic believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable as of the date made, expectations may prove to have been materially different from the results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. TetraLogic has attempted to identify forward looking statements by terminology including ''believes,'' ''estimates,'' ''anticipates,'' ''expects,'' ''plans,'' ''projects,'' ''intends,'' ''potential,'' ''may,'' ''could,'' ''might,'' ''will,'' ''should,'' ''approximately'' or other words that convey uncertainty of future events or outcomes to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, including those discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on March 19, 2014 and in our form 10-Q filed with the SEC on November 5, 2014. Any forward-looking statements contained in this release speak only as of its date. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this release to reflect events or circumstances occurring after its date or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.