Euroscreen Presents Proof-of-Concept Data for its Lead Candidate ESN-196, a CCR5 agonist for the Treatment of HIV

Euroscreen SA today announced preclinical results for its CCR5 agonist, ESN-196, at the 15th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections held in Boston, MA. Data presented at the 15th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections, Boston, MA.

Brussels, Belgium (PRWEB) February 5, 2008 -- Euroscreen SA today announced preclinical results for its CCR5 agonist, ESN-196, at the 15th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections held in Boston, MA.

In a poster session entitled "ESN-196, A Novel Small-molecule CCR5 Agonist Inhibits R5 HIV Infection", Graeme Fraser, Ph.D., Euroscreen's Director of Drug Discovery, presented the bioactivity profile of ESN-196 with emphasis on its superior mechanism of action and comparable potency to maraviroc in inhibiting viral infection of human blood cells.

"ESN-196 proof-of-concept is a pivotal milestone for our drug discovery operations. The preclinical development of ESN-196 is now our main focus, to reach clinical development within the next 18-months," stated Jean Combalbert, Ph.D., Euroscreen's President & CEO.

This is the company's first presentation and publication on this program NCE for which patent applications were filed in 2007.

For further research program Information, please contact:
Euroscreen S.A.
Tel: +32 71 348 500,
email: LicensingBD@euroscreen.com

Graeme Fraser, Ph.D.
Director, Drug Discovery         

Al Gray, Ph. D.
Director, Business Development

About Euroscreen SA
Euroscreen, a privately held company based in Brussels, Belgium, is a preclinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focusing on the discovery, development and partnering of small molecule drugs for unmet medical needs. Euroscreen is developing a pipeline of compounds targeting G Protein-Coupled Receptors (GPCRs) using over 13 years of experience in research and commercialization of this critical class of drug targets. Initially, Euroscreen was a spin-off company of the "Université Libre de Bruxelles" based on GPCR reagent development and commercialization. Euroscreen is now developing drugs on internal targets such as CCR5 as well as several preclinical-stage collaborations with partners.

The Company has developed a broad target portfolio for licensing to biopharmaceutical companies. Such patents address GPCRs such as CCR5, Chemerin receptor, GPR43, GPR7/8, ORL1-R, FPRL2, purinergic receptors (P2Y4, P2Y11 and P2Y13) and SHIP2 for type II diabetes. Euroscreen is able to offer intellectual property rights to companies for the development of therapeutic drugs that act through these targets.

Euroscreen pursues a dual platform strategy of combining its internal drug discovery programs with its fully dedicated Custom Screening Business Unit (EUROSCREEN FAST), providing GPCR customized screening and other services for biotech and pharmaceutical companies around the world. The company has research and licensing partnerships with Alchemia, AstraZeneca, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Cephalon, GNF, Grunenthal, HGS, ICOS, Medarex, Novartis and Pfizer. (www.euroscreen.com)

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