Synvista Collaboration Demonstrates in Preclinical Studies the Mechanism for Defective Cholesterol Transport in Patients wit...( MONTVALE N.J. Nov. 5 /- Synvista ...),Health

MONTVALE, N.J., Nov. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Synvista Therapeutics, Inc. (Amex: SYI) announced results of a series of preclinical studies designed to explain the mechanism underlying dysfunctional high density lipoprotein (HDL), that creates a defect in reverse cholesterol transport in patients with Diabetes Mellitus (DM). The studies reveal that a common blood protein, Haptoglobin, binds to the core of HDL and that a defective Haptoglobin variant (Hp2-2), found in 40% of the population, may induce dysfunctionality in HDL. Further, the studies report that exposure to Vitamin E can restore HDL functionality and the process of reverse cholesterol transport. The study is being presented today at the American Heart Association's (AHA) Scientific Sessions 2007 in Orlando, Florida.

"We are very pleased with the outcome of these studies, as we believe they provide scientific rationale for our current development platform, including our work developing a diagnostic test for Haptoglobin type, to determine cardiovascular risk and a therapeutic product to decrease HDL oxidation and restore reverse cholesterol transport function," said Noah Berkowitz, M.D., Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Synvista. "This study further demonstrates that the Hp2-2 phenotype, a risk factor for cardiovascular events in patients with diabetes, may function by interfering with the function of HDL and promoting inflammatory atherosclerosis."

The experiments of Rabea Asleh, M.D., of the Rappaport Faculty of Medicine and Research Institute, at the Technion, Haifa, Israel, who is today's recipient of the AHA's Council on Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism's 2007 New Investigator Award, provided a mechanistic explanat
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