BASKING RIDGE, N.J., May 22, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- VioQuest Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTCBB:VQPH) is hosting an analyst meeting to build awareness of the effects of the over-expression of phosphorylated Akt and PTPases, and their roles in cancer treatment. "Optimizing Cancer Treatment With Drugs That Target Critical Cellular Pathways" will be held Wednesday, May 24, 2006, at the Intercontinental, The Barclay New York, in New York City beginning at 4:30 PM EDT. VioQuest owns the rights to two targeted anti-cancer therapeutics: VQD-001, which has shown pre-clinically to inhibit protein tyrosine phosphatases; and VQD-002, which has shown pre-clinically to inhibit the phosphorylation of Akt.
The following keynote speakers will be presenting at the conference: Francis J. Giles, M.D., Professor, Leukemia Department, The University Of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; Ernest Borden, M.D., Director, Center for Cancer Drug Discovery & Development, The Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Center; Said Sebti, Ph.D., Director, Drug Discovery Program, Moffitt Cancer Center; I. Craig Henderson, M.D., President, Keryx BioPharmaceuticals and Adjunct Professor, University of California, San Francisco; and Taolin Yi, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Staff, Cancer Biology, The Cleveland Clinic.
"Knowledge about the mechanisms of action of cancer therapeutics has become a very relevant and timely issue for patients, clinicians and drug-development companies, as well as those investors who provide financial support for the conduct of such clinical studies," said Daniel Greenleaf, the Company's president and chief executive officer. "We at VioQuest believe that facilitating an understanding of relevant mechanisms of action will encourage those involved in drug development, directly or indirectly, to make more reasoned decisions in the future."
Of particular interest at the Conference were the roles played by Akt ("protein kinase B") and PTPases ("protein tyrosine phosphatases ") in the progression -- and regression -- of malignant tumors. The guest speakers include leaders in the scientific community who are helping biopharmaceutical companies understand the crucial cellular processes by which treatments can interfere with the deleterious effects of Akt and PTPases.
About VioQuest Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
VioQuest Pharmaceuticals, Inc. acquires, develops, and commercializes targeted late preclinical and early clinical stage therapies with unique mechanisms of action for oncology, viral and autoimmune disorders. A leader in personalized therapeutics, VioQuest has two targeted therapeutics in clinic trials: VQD-001, an inhibitor of specific protein tyrosine phosphatases, has shown compelling preclinical activity in both renal and melanoma cancers and VQD-002 which has shown to inhibit the phosphorylation of Akt which can be seen in abnormal levels in breast, ovarian, colorectal, pancreatic, and liquid cancers.
VioQuest's subsidiary, Chiral Quest, a pioneer in asymmetric chemocatalysis and custom synthesis, offers its proprietary technology products to well-known pharmaceutical and fine chemical companies worldwide to improve their production efficiencies and, in some instances, to increase the overall safety and efficacy of the underlying drug.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause VioQuest's actual results and experiences to differ materially from the anticipated results and expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from these statements. Among other things, there can be no assurances that any of VioQuest's research programs and compounds will be successfully commercialized. Other risks and uncertainties that affect forward-looking statements contained in this press release include the possibility that the market for the sale of certain products may not develop as expected; that development of our product candidates may not proceed as planned, the possibility of being unable to obtain regulatory approval of VioQuest's product candidates, the risk that the results of clinical trials may not support VioQuest's claims, and risks related to VioQuest's ability to protect its intellectual property and its reliance on third parties to develop its product candidates. Additional risks are described in VioQuest's Annual Report on Form 10-KSB for the year ended December 31, 2005. VioQuest assumes no obligation and does not intend to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.