Medivir substance shows effect on multi resistant HIV

Medivir substance shows effect on multi resistant HIV Dr Thomas Merigan at Stanford University today presents new data where one of Medivir's patented substances, alovudine (FLT) is shown to inhibit multi resistant HIV in laboratory tests. This presentation is being given at an international congress on HIV treatment in Rome. "Multi resistant HIV is today a growing problem. The combination treatments given with current HIV drugs have prolonged life for HIV patients. Unfortunately multi resistance develops and existing drugs can not keep the virus in check. Patients with these multi resistant strains can spread the resistant virus. The results with alovudine are very interesting since the experiments showed that multi resistant HIV in cell culture was as sensitive to alovudine as wild type virus", says Dr Merigan. " It is gratifying that other researchers with a larger number of resistant HIV isolates have now been able to verify our experiments. Presently we are investigating the possibility to continue the clinical development of this substance", says Bo Öberg, Vice President of Research. "FLT was earlier evaluated in AIDS patients but the project was put on hold when the HIV protease inhibitors became available and multi resistant virus did not exist 7 years ago. These new results and the increasing problem with multi resitant HIV strains makes this project highly interesting. Phase I and phase II data in patients with wild type virus are already available", Bo Öberg continues. Huddinge 14 september 1999 Medivir AB (publ) For further information please contact: Anna Bernsten, Vice President Business Development and Investor Relations, Medivir AB, phone +46 8 608 31 05, +46 709-369 069 or e-mail anna.bernsten@medivir.se. Information about Medivir on internet: www.medivir.se Medivir is a research and development company which develops new and better substances for the treatment of infectious diseases. The subsidiary company CCS AB develops, manufactures and markets body-care products and pharmaceuticals. The Group, was introduced on the Stockholm Stock Exchange in November 1996 and consists of the parent company, Medivir AB, the CCS AB subsidiary and UK company CCS (UK) Ltd. ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/09/14/19990913BIT00340/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/09/14/19990913BIT00340/bit0002.pdf