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COMPANY CONTACTS:
John Funkhouser, President, CEO
Mike Riddle, Executive Vice President
(919) 954-9817
INVESTOR CONTACTS
Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates
Ruth Abeshaus (ruth) ph (212) 838-3777
Bruce Voss (bruce) ph (310) 575-4848 |
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 21, 1999
PHARMANETICS ANNOUNCES EXPANSION OF COLLABORATIVE AGREEMENT WITH ASTRAZENECA
Raleigh, N.C. (December 21, 1999) – PharmaNetics, Inc. (NASDAQ NM: PHAR), the holding company of Cardiovascular Diagnostics, Inc. ("CVDI"), today announced it has signed an agreement to sell thrombin inhibitor ecarin clotting time (ECT) test cards or ("TIM") cards, to AstraZeneca for the rapid evaluation of the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic effects of thrombin inhibitors. The test cards will be used in AstraZeneca’s clinical trials. The agreement is in the range of $1.0 - $2.5 million U.S. dollars.
In commenting on this agreement, John Funkhouser, President and Chief Executive Officer of PharmaNetics stated, "This is our fifth announcement in the last six weeks of 1999 and we are pleased to be able to close out the year with additional pharmaceutical support. This agreement is another example of the flexibility of the TAS technology to manage multiple therapeutics over a variety of disease states."
PharmaNetics’ strategy is to provide a comprehensive menu of rapid coagulation products, which affect blood clotting. There are numerous new drugs under development that may ultimately be used separately or in combination for patients suffering from cardiovascular or stroke-related illness. Until clinical trials are completed, it will not be known to what degree patients will require managing. Mr. Funkhouser continued, "It is extremely important for PharmaNetics to provide a comprehensive menu of tests to diversify its risk and provide a complete management solution to physicians potentially using these new compounds in the future."
Professor Gunnar Olsson, Vice President Global Medical, Cardiovascular Therapy Area for AstraZeneca stated, "In previous studies, PharmaNetics’ rapid technology has proven to be an accurate and convenient method of determining the pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic profile of our thrombin inhibitors. The future will determine its utility in the clinical setting."
PharmaNetics, Inc. develops, manufactures and markets rapid turnaround diagnostics to assess blood clot formation and dissolution. The Company develops tests based on its proprietary, dry chemistry Thrombolytic Assessment System for its principal target market of powerful new drug compounds, some of which may have narrow therapeutic ranges, as well as for monitoring routine anticoagulants. The Company’s therapeutic diagnostics are used to monitor the effect of antithrombotic agents in the treatment of angina, myocardial infarction (heart attack), stroke, deep venous thrombosis, and pulmonary and arterial emboli.
AstraZeneca PLC is one of the top five pharmaceutical companies in the world based on sales and is a therapeutic leader in cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, oncology, anesthesia including pain management, central nervous system (CNS) and respiratory products. Based in the United Kingdom, AstraZeneca PLC (NYSE: AZN) is a major $15.8 billion international bioscience business engaged in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of ethical (prescription) pharmaceuticals and agricultural products, and the supply of healthcare services.
The U.S. operations of AstraZeneca include AstraZeneca, a business unit of Zeneca Inc., AstraZeneca LP, Zeneca Ag Products and Salick Health Care. In the United States, AstraZeneca is a $7.2 billion bioscience business with approximately 11,000 employees.
This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding future events and the future performance of PharmaNetics that involve risks and uncertainties, such as risks related to market acceptance, clinical trials and dependence on third-party distributors and collaborative partners that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Information concerning these and other of the factors that could cause actual results to materially differ from those in the forward-looking statements is contained in the Company’s SEC filings, including Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K reports.
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