The Phase II grant will be used to seek a bioavailable inhibitor of plasmepsin, an aspartyl protease believed to play a key role in the pathogenesis of malaria. Milhous of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. SBIR Phase I grant for plasmepsin, one of Pharmacopeia's internal drug discovery programs, was received in July 1997. Phase I was successful in identifying potent and selective inhibitors of plasmepsin. Phase II will focus on furthering the Company's knowledge of structure-activity relationships to aid in the identification of additional selective inhibitors effective against the parasite.
Malaria is still a major health challenge causing the death of several million people each year.
In areas where malaria is endemic, tourists and military and government personnel are at serious risk of disease and death. We look forward to making even further progress in this, and our other, internal programs. Pharmacopeia also has a research partnership with Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and research arrangements with several biotechnology companies and academic and government laboratories. Except for the historical information contained herein, this statement may contain projections or other forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future financial performance of the Company. We wish to caution you that such statements are just predictions and that actual events or results may differ materially.