SUNNYVALE, Calif., Aug. 31, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- STATegics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company committed to the discovery and development of orally available small molecule modulators of cytokine receptors, today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a patent covering its small molecule thrombopoietin mimetic compounds. The U.S. Patent No. 7,786,159 covers compositions of matter and pharmaceutical formulations for STATegics' lead TPO mimetic, STS-T4, and analogues thereof.
"This recently issued patent provides us with important intellectual property as we move toward the commercialization of thrombopoietin mimetics. In addition, we are making excellent progress in the discovery and development of small molecule mimetics of other clinically and commercially relevant cytokines," said Juha Punnonen, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder at STATegics. "We are very pleased with the progress being made in our thrombopoietin mimetic program. STS-T4 has the potential to become the preferred therapy for thrombocytopenia and securing protection of our intellectual property will support the further development of these compounds," commented Jeffrey R. Spencer, Ph.D., Senior Vice President and Co-Founder at STATegics.
About Thrombopoietin and STS-T4
Thrombopoietin is a cytokine that increases the production of platelets, which are one of the components of blood that turn on the coagulation process. STS-T4 is an orally available small molecule designed to mimic thrombopoietin by binding to an allosteric binding site of thrombopoietin receptor. Allosteric sites are different and physically separate from the binding sites of the endogenous cytokines and, therefore, STS-T4 can either work alone or in combination with thrombopoietin, a relatively large endogenously produced protein. STS-T4 induces proliferation of human hematopoietic progenitor cells and directs their differentiation into megakaryocytes that are responsible for platelet production. STS-T4 is a water soluble compound and has demonstrated a promising potency and safety profile in preclinical studies. STS-T4 has the potential to become the preferred therapy for the treatment of thrombocytopenia (low platelet levels) and other diseases where thrombopoietin receptor activation is desired.
About STATegics, Inc.
STATegics, Inc. is a privately-held biopharmaceutical company in Sunnyvale, CA, committed to the discovery and development of orally available small molecule modulators of cytokine receptors. The company's lead programs are focused on small molecule mimetics of erythropoietin and thrombopoietin for the treatment of central nervous system diseases and thrombocytopenia, respectively. Preclinical studies performed by STATegics and its collaborators have indicated superior properties of the lead compounds when compared to alternative approaches. STATegics is also developing screening technologies for efficient and rapid identification of small molecules targeting allosteric sites of cytokine receptors. For more information on the company, visit www.stategics.com.
CONTACT: STATegics, Inc. Juha Punnonen, CEO [email protected]
