( Study Results Published in Cancer Resea...)New Research Demonstrates Broad Efficacy of Azixa (MPC-6827),Against Multiple Tumor Types and in Drug Resistant Cell Lines,Health

TARRYTOWN, N.Y., June 15, 2007 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- EpiCept Corporation today announced the results of scientific studies that (1) demonstrate that Azixa(TM) (MPC-6827) is effective in treating multiple types of human tumors in animal models, (2) reveal a mechanism by which MPC-6827 exerts its effects, and (3) show that MPC-6827 is not affected by cellular proteins known to be involved in cancer drug resistance. The study results appear in the June 15, 2007 edition of Cancer Research, a journal published by the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR).

"The results of this study demonstrate the potential of Azixa (MPC-6827) to offer significant anti-tumor activity, even in tumors expressing multi-drug resistant phenotypes," remarked Jack Talley, President and Chief Executive Officer. "These data further exemplify the potential of our proprietary Anti- cancer Screening Apoptosis Program, through which this compound was discovered."

The Cancer Research authors describe results showing that MPC-6827 displays significant activity in inhibiting the growth of a broad spectrum of solid tumor lines in athymic nude mice, including human breast, colon, pancreas, ovarian and mouse melanoma. Additional in vitro studies demonstrated that MPC-6827 exerts its effects by binding of tubulin, thereby inhibiting polymerization and leading to cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Unlike other tubulin-disrupting cancer treatments, MPC-6827 had efficacy against tumor cells that over-expressed the three main protein transporters responsible for multidrug resistance, indicating that MPC-6827 may prove effective against drug resistant tumors in a clinical setting.

MPC-6827 is one of two compounds currently in clinical trials discovered through EpiCept's Anti-cancer Screening Apoptosis Program (ASAP). MPC-6827 is part of the EP90745 series of apoptosis inducers, which
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