ACCESS PHARMACEUTICALS, INC. (OTC Bulletin Board: ACCP), a biopharmaceutical company specializing in products for cancer and supportive care, announced that its Director of Chemistry and Quality, Dr. Ric Zarzycki will give an invited presentation today on the Company's Cobalamin nanoparticle technology at a thought-leadership symposium being held at the American Chemical Society's ("ACS") 240th National Meeting & Exposition, at Boston Convention and Exhibition Center in Boston, Massachusetts, August 22-26, 2010. The conference symposium titled, "Multifunctional Nanoparticles for Drug Delivery and Imaging", will focus on the advancement of nanotechnology in the pharmaceutical and diagnostic industries. Dr. Zarzycki will highlight the distinct characteristics of Access' Cobalamin nanotechnology and the potential key role it will play in the future treatment of various diseases.
"The ACS is a leading organization comprised of scientific thought-leaders from the US and from around the world and we are honored to be invited to present the significant progress made with our Cobalamin technology at a conference symposium which includes many leading nanotechnology scientists ," said Dr. Zarzycki, Director of Chemistry and Quality for Access Pharmaceuticals, Inc. He continued, "The strong interest surrounding our Cobalamin nanotechnology and the distinct revolutionary benefits it lends to large-molecule formulations, especially the unprecedented oral bioavailability, remains encouraging as we continue development of novel formulations for various disease applications."
Last month, Access Pharmaceuticals announced its pre-licensing feasibility agreement with a leading biotechnology company to develop an oral formulation of a currently marketed, proprietary injectable drug, utilizing its proprietary Cobalamin Oral Drug Delivery Technology. Although the name and the terms of the agreement have not been disclosed due to competitive reasons, management indicated that any successful formulation developed will be subject to a subsequent full-licensing agreement.
Cobalamin is Access' proprietary technology based upon the use of vitamin B12 for targeted delivery of drugs to disease sites and for oral drug delivery of drugs that otherwise have poor oral bioavailability. Access has focused its Cobalamin product development program on the oral delivery of insulin and human growth hormone, two peptides which currently can only be given by injection. Since presenting promising results at a major conference in mid-2008, Access has made substantial improvements to the formulation technology. A new Cobalamin-coated insulin-containing nanoparticle formulation delivered orally provided a pharmacological response (lowering of blood glucose levels in an animal model of diabetes) greater than 80% of that achieved by insulin delivered subcutaneously. This represents a substantial oral bioavailability, indicating that this formulation has potential for clinical development and ultimate commercialization. Adaptation of this technology has provided a Cobalamin human growth hormone formulation that has demonstrated good efficacy, represented by more than 25% improvement in weight gain, when given orally in an established animal model. Access continues to move both products towards clinical development.
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