Telik Announces Publication of Diabetes Research in Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemist...( PALO ALTO Calif. July 8 /- Telik ...)

PALO ALTO, Calif., July 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Telik, Inc. (Nasdaq: TELK), today announced the publication of research in Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters describing a novel class of small molecule compounds that could potentially lead to a new treatment for diabetes. These unique compounds are the result of an extensive medicinal chemistry effort at Telik to optimize the original lead structure identified through the application of Telik's TRAP(R) technology.

The compounds developed activate the insulin receptor and may have the potential to be an orally administered treatment for diabetes. Such small molecules have been actively sought after since the discovery of insulin in the 1920s by Banting and Best, and could represent a completely different approach to the treatment of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. Telik's publication, Robinson, L. et al., "5-Substituted isophthalamides as insulin receptor sensitizers," Bioorg. Med. Chem. Lett., 18: 3492 (2008), describes a series of compounds that are capable of activating the insulin receptor and were also shown to increase glucose transport into adipocytes.

"Telik's drug development focus does not include diabetes and other metabolic diseases," said Marc Steuer, Senior Vice President, Business Development. "It is our intention, therefore, to seek a licensee with the requisite development skills and expertise in this therapeutic area."

About Telik

Telik, Inc. of Palo Alto, CA, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing novel small molecule drugs to treat serious diseases. The company's most advanced investigational drug candidates in clinical development are TELINTRA(R), a modified glutathione analog for the treat
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