Alcon Commences Phase 2 Clinical Trial of NovaBay's NVC-422 for Viral Conj...( EMERYVILLE Calif. and HUENENBERG Swit...),Health

EMERYVILLE, Calif. and HUENENBERG, Switzerland, July 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Alcon, Inc. (NYSE: ACL) and its partner, NovaBay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE-AMEX: NBY), announced today that Alcon has begun treating patients in a Phase 2 clinical trial of NovaBay's patented lead Aganocide(R) compound, NVC-422, for viral conjunctivitis, a type of "pink eye". Conjunctivitis is a pervasive and painful condition that affects both adults and children, leading to more than four million doctor and emergency room visits in the United States each year.

NovaBay has a licensing and research collaboration agreement with Alcon, the world's leading eye care company, for use of its Aganocide(R) compounds in the eye, ear and sinus, and in contact lens solutions.

Developed by NovaBay to mimic the body's defense against infection, Aganocides(R) are proprietary synthetic analogs of the same molecules used by white blood cells to destroy harmful microbes in the body, such as viruses and bacteria. Because of their natural mechanism of action, NovaBay believes that Aganocide(R) compounds have a low potential for generating microbial resistance, offering a potential solution to the problem of rising resistance of microbes to traditional antibiotics.

The Phase 2 viral conjunctivitis study follows a recently completed Phase 1 trial in which safety and tolerability were successfully demonstrated in 120 healthy volunteers with no reported serious adverse events.

"We are pleased to be entering mid-stage clinical testing for viral conjunctivitis," said Ron Najafi, Ph.D., chairman and chief executive officer of NovaBay. "This is the first step in the ophthalmic clinical development program for NVC-422, which has the immediate goal o
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