Raptor Pharmaceuticals to Collaborate with Centre Hospitalier Universitaire d'Angers for Phase II Clinical Trial in Huntington...( NOVATO Calif. Nov. 10 /- RaptorPh...),Health

NOVATO, Calif., Nov. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Raptor Pharmaceuticals Corp. ("Raptor" or the "Company") (OTC Bulletin Board: RPTP), today announced that the Company has entered into an agreement with the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire d'Angers ("CHU d'Angers") of France to evaluate Raptor's proprietary delayed-release cysteamine bitartrate ("DR Cysteamine") in a Phase II clinical trial in patients with Huntington's Disease ("Huntington's"). CHU d'Angers has received a grant from the Programme Hospitalier de Recherche Clinique - National, a program under the French Ministry of Health, to fund the two-year, multi-center Phase II clinical trial in Huntington's patients. Under the terms of the agreement, Raptor will provide clinical supplies of DR Cysteamine for the trial.

In May 2008, the Office of Orphan Product Development at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") granted orphan drug designation to Raptor for cysteamine-based drugs, including DR Cysteamine, for the treatment of Huntington's.

Ted Daley, President of Raptor's Clinical Division, stated, "We look forward to collaborating with CHU d'Angers to evaluate DR Cysteamine in patients with Huntington's Disease. Our formation work with DR Cysteamine in conjunction with the CHU d'Angers studies in Huntington's fits our strategic plan to explore multiple potential indications for cysteamine and DR Cysteamine. Cysteamine has demonstrated neuroprotective effects in preclinical studies, and the planned Phase II study led by CHU d'Angers could confirm existing data regarding cysteamine's safety and potential efficacy in Huntington's."

Professor Dominique Bonneau, M.D., Ph.D. of CHU d'Angers, commented, "We are encouraged by the existing studies that indicate cysteamine's potential as a neuroprotectant for treating Huntington's, and we believe that Raptor's formulation could offer a better tolerated drug for this patient population. We are confident that this trial will enhance our
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