Advanced Life Sciences Receives Complete Response Letter From FDA for Restanza(TM) (Cethromycin) in Community Acquired...( CHICAGO July 31 /- ...)

CHICAGO, July 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Advanced Life Sciences Holdings, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: ADLS) announced that it received a complete response letter today from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding its New Drug Application (NDA) for Restanza(TM) (cethromycin) for the outpatient treatment of adults with mild-to-moderate community acquired pneumonia (CAP). In its letter, the FDA indicated that they cannot approve the application for Restanza in its current form and that, to gain approval, additional clinical data is required to demonstrate efficacy. Advanced Life Sciences submitted the NDA in September, 2008 based on the results of 53 clinical studies including 2 pivotal Phase 3 studies in CAP and a safety database of over 5,000 patients.

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Advanced Life Sciences intends to comply with the Agency's recommendations and continue to pursue approval of Restanza in CAP. The Company believes that an additional well-controlled clinical study designed to demonstrate efficacy in a more severe CAP population will likely be required for the approval of Restanza. In parallel, the Company will continue to advance Restanza as a biodefense agent against anthrax, plague and tularemia.

On June 2, 2009, the FDA Anti-Infective Drugs Advisory Committee (AIDAC) reviewed the Restanza NDA. The AIDAC voted that Restanza demonstrated safety for the outpatient treatment of adults with mild-to-moderate CAP, but voted that Restanza did not demonstrate efficacy in the treatment of CAP. The committee's negative vote on the drug candidate's efficacy followed a discussion that the Restanza NDA included data on patients with mild-to-moderate disease and that the new draft guidance for developing treatments for CAP, released in March, 200
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