AEGiS-PRn: The Immune Response Corporation Announces Publication of Results from Thailand Clinical Trial

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1998. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

The Immune Response Corporation Announces Publication of Results from Thailand Clinical Trial

PR Newswire; Tuesday August 25, 1998

CARLSBAD, Calif., Aug. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- The Immune Response Corporation (Nasdaq: IMNR - news) announced today the publication of results from an open-label clinical trial being conducted in Thailand using REMUNE(TM). The data was published in the journal AIDS (Volume 12, Number 12 1998). The company believes this paper, entitled "Effect of HIV-specific immune-based therapy in subjects infected with HIV-1 subtype E in Thailand," may support previous findings regarding the activity of REMUNE. This trial involved the follow-up on 30 Thai individuals infected predominantly with the subtype E strain of HIV-1 who were not taking antiviral drug therapy. At 60 weeks of follow-up after treatment with REMUNE, subjects had a significant increase in CD4 cell count (p<0.0001), CD4 cell percentage (p<0.0001), CD8 percentage (p<0.0001) and body weight (p<0.0001) compared to pretreatment levels. A decrease in viral load was observed in 14 individuals with detectable viral load at baseline (p=0.04). Furthermore, 23 of 30 (77%) subjects developed HIV-specific immune responses. An ongoing placebo-controlled clinical trial is being conducted in Thailand in up to 300 HIV-infected individuals. These clinical trials are being conducted by investigators from Mahidol University in Bangkok, Thailand.

Dr. Vina Churdboonchart, Principal Investigator, noted "These results are encouraging and we are hoping to replicate these findings in ongoing placebo-controlled trials of REMUNE in Thailand where access to antiviral drugs is limited and new effective therapies for HIV-1 infection are urgently needed."

In clinical trials conducted to date with REMUNE, with or without antiviral drug therapy, the most frequently reported side effects include local transient pain, soreness and redness at the site of injection, muscle aches, fatigue and headache.

REMUNE is an immune-based therapy currently in development by The Immune Response Corporation and Agouron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. for the treatment of HIV infection.

The Immune Response Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company based in Carlsbad, California, developing immune-based therapies to induce specific T cell responses for the treatment of HIV, autoimmune diseases and cancer. The Company is conducting clinical trials for its immune-based therapies for HIV, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, multiple sclerosis, colon cancer and brain cancer and preclinical studies for melanoma and prostate cancers. In addition, the Company is developing a targeted delivery technology for gene therapy which is designed to enable the intravenous injection of genes for delivery directly to the liver. The Company's gene therapy program is currently focused on diseases of the liver and is in preclinical studies for the treatment of hemophilia and hepatitis.

NOTE: The Immune Response Corporation news releases are available at no charge through the company's automated attendant 800 number at 800-491-0153. News releases are also available through PRNewswire's Company News On-Call fax service. For a menu of available news releases or to retrieve a specific release made by The Immune Response Corporation, please call 800-758-5804, extension 434675. Please retain these numbers for future reference. Company information can also be located on the Internet Web Site: http://www.imnr.com.

This news release contains forward-looking statements. Actual results could vary materially from those expected due to a variety of risk factors, including the uncertainty of successful completion of clinical trials, and those risks set forth from time to time in The Immune Response Corporation's SEC filings, including but not limited to its report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1997. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly release the result of any revisions to these forward-looking statements which may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

SOURCE: The Immune Response Corporation

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