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$1.16m Funding for Cogane
$1.16m Funding for Cogane.
About this update from Ixico Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n Phytopharm PLC\n21 January 2008\n\n\nCompany Contact: U.K. Investor Relations Contact:\nPhytopharm plc FD\nDr Daryl Rees CEO David Yates\nPiers Morgan CFO Ben Atwell\n+44 1480 437 697 +44 207 831 3113\nwww.phytopharm.com\n\nPhytopharm receives $1.16 million funding from Michael J. Fox Foundation for\ndevelopment of Cogane(TM) as a treatment for Parkinson's disease\n\nGODMANCHESTER, Cambridgeshire, U.K. (21 January 2008) - Phytopharm plc (LSE:\nPYM) ('Phytopharm' or the 'Company') announces today that it has been awarded\nfunding by The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) to\nsupport the development of Cogane(TM) as a treatment for Parkinson's disease\n(PD). The $1.16 million award will be paid over a period of two years.\n\nIn pre-clinical models, Cogane(TM) reverses the changes in the area of the brain\ninvolved in Parkinson's disease by inducing the body's own production of\nproteins known as neurotrophic factors. In particular, one of these factors\nknown as 'GDNF' has been shown to be particularly effective in re-growing\ndamaged nerves. Since GDNF is a protein it cannot be given orally (in pill or\nliquid form) because it is degraded in the stomach and intestine, and also does\nnot readily cross the blood-brain barrier. GDNF can work only when injected\ninto or when produced inside the brain. Direct injection of GDNF into the area\nof the brain involved in Parkinson's disease has shown substantial beneficial\neffects in small-scale clinical studies but requires highly complex and\ndifficult surgical procedures. Cogane(TM), which can be taken orally, readily\ncrosses the blood-brain barrier and stimulates the release of GDNF in the brain\nand therefore has the potential to overcome many of the difficulties associated\nwith GDNF administration.\n\nThe MJFF funding will support preclinical studies to determine the optimal\ndosing requirements for Cogane(TM) and will be carried out by Dr Jonathan\nBrotchie, a Senior Scientist at the Toronto Western Hospital and part of the\nUniversity Health Network (UHN) in Toronto, Canada. Dr Brotchie is a recognised\nexpert in the field of Parkinson's disease and, at UHN, runs one of the world's\npremier research laboratories for the identification of novel treatments,\ndiagnostics and cures for Parkinson's disease and related disorders.\n\nPhytopharm is also in disc...