For Immediate Release:

December 4, 2007

Contact: Brigham and Women’s Media Relations

Tel: 617-534-1600

bwhmediarelations@partners.org

Alopexx Pharmaceuticals Licenses Novel Therapy for the treatment of MRSA and other serious infections from BWH and BIDMC

Boston, MA – A promising new treatment for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, has been licensed by Alopexx Pharmaceuticals from researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.  In the past decade MRSA has emerged as a major public health problem.  Due to the increasing volume of antimicrobial usage around the world, MRSA and many bacteria have become increasingly resistant to most commonly used antibiotics. A recent government study concluded that the serious, invasive MRSA infections are more widespread than previously thought: striking 94,360 people in this country in 2005 and contributing to the deaths of 18,650, more than succumbed to AIDS that year.

The therapy developed by Drs. Gerald Pier and Casie Kelly-Quintos at Brigham’s Channing Laboratory in collaboration with the Human Monoclonal Antibody Laboratory is a fully human monoclonal antibody that has the potential to serve as an alternative to antibiotics in the fight against MRSA and other infections.  Unlike antibiotics, monoclonal antibodies are not expected to lead to the development of bacterial resistance to the therapy.  The target of the antibody is a carbohydrate on the bacterial capsule known as PNAG.  PNAG has been found to be a critical factor in the virulence and immune response to staphylococcal infections. S. aureus strains that cannot produce PNAG have a significantly reduced ability to cause infections.  The antibody developed by Dr. Pier is directed against PNAG and works by inducing killing by the patient’s own white blood cells.

"It has been our mission to change therapy for patients with serious illnesses for the better and to have a major impact on their treatment. We are very excited about the prospect of bringing our antibody based therapy into clinical testing,” said Drs Lisa Cavacini and Marshall Posner, from BIDMC’s Monoclonal Antibody Lab.

“MRSA is a major medical problem.” said Alopexx CEO Daniel Vlock, MD.  “We are excited to be able to be able to develop Dr. Pier’s antibody for the treatment and prevention of these serious infections.”

Alopexx anticipates having the antibody available for clinical trials within the next 18 months.

For more information, please contact BWH Media Relations at (617) 534-1600 or bwhmediarelations@partners.org.

Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) is a 747-bed nonprofit teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School and a founding member of Partners HealthCare System, an integrated health care delivery network. BWH is committed to excellence in patient care with expertise in virtually every specialty of medicine and surgery.  The BWH medical preeminence dates back to 1832, and today that rich history in clinical care is coupled with its national leadership in quality improvement and patient safety initiatives and its dedication to educating and training the next generation of health care professionals. Through investigation and discovery conducted at its Biomedical Research Institute (BRI), BWH is an international leader in basic, clinical and translational research on human diseases, involving more than 800 physician-investigators and renowned biomedical scientists and faculty supported by more than $400M in funding. BWH is also home to major landmark epidemiologic population studies, including the Nurses' and Physicians' Health Studies and the Women's Health Initiative. For more information about BWH, please visit www.brighamandwomens.org

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is a patient care, teaching and research affiliate of Harvard Medical School, and consistently ranks among the top four in National Institutes of Health funding among independent hospitals nationwide. BIDMC is clinically affiliated with the Joslin Diabetes Center and is a research partner of Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center. BIDMC is the official hospital of the Boston Red Sox. For more information, visit www.bidmc.harvard.edu.

Alopexx Pharmaceuticals, LLC was co-founded by Gerald Pier, PhD and Daniel Vlock, MD.  Its aim is to develop and explore the use of novel therapies for the treatment and prevention of MRSA and other serious infections. For more information contact Daniel Vlock, MD at 617-780-1598 or daniel.vlock@alopexx.com.