ImQuest Presents New Anti-HIV Drug and Topical Microbicide Development Results on Lead Pyrimidinedione Products IQP-0410 an...( FREDERICK Md. April 16 /- ImQuest...),Health

FREDERICK, Md., April 16 /PRNewswire/ -- ImQuest Life Sciences today presented important new results on the development of their lead anti-HIV therapeutic development candidate, IQP-0410, and lead topical microbicide development candidate, IQP-0528. ImQuest scientists Robert W. Buckheit, Jr., Ph.D. (Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer) and Karen M. Watson, M.S. (Manager, Topical Microbicide Research & Development) were invited to speak at The International Conference on Antiviral Research (ICAR), being held this week in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. ImQuest studies have demonstrated that each of these highly novel pyrimidinedione inhibitors act by two distinct mechanisms of action, preventing the entry of HIV into human cells and inhibiting the activity of a key HIV enzyme, reverse transcriptase.

Dr. Buckheit presented detailed mechanism of action evaluations performed with IQP-0410, demonstrating that the compound targets a newly defined conformational cell surface target formed upon attachment of the virus to prevent the entry of HIV into the cells. This molecular target will be exploited by ImQuest to develop even more potent HIV entry inhibitors. Ms. Watson reported on results of preclinical efficacy and safety testing on the related pyrimidinedione microbicide, IQP-0528, to prevent the sexual transmission of HIV worldwide. The ImQuest team also demonstrated that IQP- 0410 was highly effective against multi-drug resistant HIV, especially viruses derived from patients treated extensively with protease inhibitors. The studies included ImQuest co-authors Lu Yang, M.D., Tracy Hartman, M.S., Christa E. Buckheit and Robert W. Buckheit, III.

"Our results clearly indicate that the pyrimidinediones represent a completely new class of HIV inhibitor that may be of great benefit to the prevention of HIV infection as a topical microbicide, the therapeutic treatment of primary HIV infection, as well as a salvage therapy for patients failing
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