_________________________________________- company is substantially progressed in respect of compliance and is expected to reach full compliance within 2-3 months, by which time it will be able to pursue major Phase II/III trials in bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and Coronary Artery Bypass Graft patients and several Phase I trials. Revenues from these trials are expected to range from US$20-100k each and will be recognised over the 2-18 month course of these trials. *************************************** CogState Ltd www.cogstate.com July 21, 2004 CogState Therapeutics Division Announces Progress in Drug Development Milestones for its programmes in Alzheimer’s Disease and Parkinson’s Disease CogState (ASX: CGS) has announced that it has reached a milestone in the development of it’s Angiotensin 4 (AT4) receptor agonist programme to develop a drug for the treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease. These AT4 agonists are believed to have potential totreat Alzheimer’s Disease partly through their effect in breaking down amyloid, a compound believed to be toxic and found in the brains of many patients with the disease. Scientists in the US (Professors Joe Harding and Jay Wright at the University of Washington in Pullman) who were responsible for first characterising the AT4 receptor in and who recently signed a licensing agreement with the Company, have successfully developed the first BIOASSAY for the positive effects on cognitive behaviour of drugs which stimulate the AT4 receptor. This novel assay, with staggering sensitivity down to 0.1 picomoles (a trillionth of a molar concentration – a metric used by research scientists) is expected to accelerate the screening of new compounds to find a drug-like molecule that could potentially be used as a treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease. Without a bioassay, cumbersome and time-consuming animal trials are necessary to screen likely drug candidates. Dr. Peter Bick, CEO of CogState comments “Professor’s Jay Wright and Joe Harding have also already used this assay to screen a series of peptide fragments (small drugs with a protein structure) and have found affinity and activity at concentrations as low as a few picomoles”. Many drugs on the market today have much lower potency in the nanomolar (billionth) or micromolar (millionth) range, indicating that the compounds synthesised here are an order of magnitude more potent. Dr. Bick added “the road towards converting these peptide fragments into a drug on the market is very long indeed,and the first step is to now convert them into small molecule analogues which mimic the behaviour of these compounds, but have the attributes of a drug in that they can be taken orally and get into the brain. The next step would then be to optimise a lead candidate for animal toxicology trials and ultimately for use in human clinical trials. The good news is that CogState now has the right tools to attack these challenges and is ahead of the milestones outlined at the time the company listed earlier this year. CogState Ltd www.cogstate.com CogState has also announced achieving progress in its programme to develop a treatment for Parkinson’s Disease. 10 grams of its lead compound, Cog0392 has been synthesised and an assay is being validated at a contract laboratory in Queensland to enable the compound to be further tested. Dr. Peter Bick, CEO of CogState comments “by early next year, we hope to have in-vivo preclinical evidence showing that Cog0392 can be taken orally and is not only absorbed into the brain, but also increases the amount of dopamine in the brain (a compound which is deficient in the brains of people with Parkinson’s Disease)”. If these results are positive, then the company will be in a position to make a decision about the timetable for initiating animal toxicology trials and the preparation of an IND for starting human clinical trials later that calendar year. About CogState: The company specialises in computerised technology for the detection of neurological problems and one of its major markets is the detection of concussion in athletes. By taking baseline data using their computerise tests, coaches and parents can then retest following injury – to determine when the player can return to the game. CogState has a significant client list of elite sporting clubs and organizations including AFL, the US Olympic Ski Team and the UK Jockey Club. Major Pharmaceutical companies also purchase the computerised test in human clinical trials to determine the effect of drugs on cognitive performance. The CogState test is also used for the very early detection of Alzheimer’s Disease. The test was recently recommended by the Alzheimers Association of Australia (Victoria) for use by all people over 50 for baseline data and for annual testing to detect any evidence of Alzheimer’s. While there is no cure for the disease there are a number of drugs which can delay the disease if used early on. CogState has a therapeutics division which has in-licensed two drug targets from leading medical research organisations in Japan and Israel for the treatment of Alzheimer's Disease and Parkinson's Disease respectively. Contact: Dr. Peter A. Bick, CEO CogState Ltd 0408 415 823
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