Bionovo Announces Positive Developments in On-going Phase 1/2 Cancer ...( Patients Showing Excellent Tolerabil...),Health

Patients Showing Excellent Tolerability at Higher Doses in Dose Escalation

EMERYVILLE, Calif., Feb. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Bionovo, Inc. (Nasdaq: BNVI) today announced that the higher doses of its innovative breast cancer drug candidate, BZL101 were well tolerated. As a result, the company will be extending the dose escalation portion of the study longer than previously communicated.

"We had expected to reach the maximum tolerated dose earlier, and then transition to the full Phase 2 component of the trial with that dose. Instead, we have seen very favorable tolerability data at the higher doses, and we are continuing to escalate the dose," said Mary Tagliaferri, M.D., Bionovo's President and Chief Medical Officer. "As a result of this positive news, we will continue the dose escalation, so long as we continue to see favorable tolerability and safety, after which we will transition to the full Phase 2 study component."

Separately, Isaac Cohen, O.M.D., Bionovo's Chairman and CEO, stated, "We also completed further laboratory analyses on the mechanism of action and chemical characteristics of BZL101, which are striking and result in highly selective cancer cell killing. We expect to be presenting this data at key scientific conferences later this year, along with any available efficacy information."

About BZL101

BZL101 is an oral drug designed for the treatment of advanced breast cancer and pancreatic cancer with a novel mechanism of action. BZL101 targets cancer cells while leaving normal cells healthy and intact. Normal cells depend primarily on the citric acid cycle (>85%) and very little on glycolysis (<7%) for energy production. In contrast, cancer cells depend largely on glycolysis (>85%) for ener
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