NanoViricides, Inc. Anti-Herpes Drug Candidate Reduces Viral Load by 99.99%

WEST HAVEN, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- NanoViricides, Inc. (OTC BB: NNVC.OB) (the "Company"), announced today that the herpes simplex viral load was reduced by 99.99% or 10,000 fold in in-vitro studies by nanoviricides(TM) drug candidates. The studies were performed by Thevac in Baton Rouge, LA, in collaboration with the Division of Biotechnology and Molecular Medicine at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine under the supervision of Dr. Gus Kousoulas.

Four different nanoviricides showed greater than 10,000-fold (>99.99%) reduction in virus quantity compared to untreated controls in a cell culture assay employing the LSU proprietary green-fluorescent-protein-tagged (GFP) modified HSV-1 McKrae strain.

These nanoviricide drug candidates are designed to act against all herpes simplex virus strains, including HSV-1 and HSV-2. The Company has commissioned additional in vitro studies to confirm the results. Animal studies have also been scheduled.

"We are very excited with this success against HSV-1," said Eugene Seymour, MD, MPH, CEO of the Company, adding "and expect this to lead to a topical skin cream against herpes cold sores and genital herpes. This opens up another significant commercial opportunity for the Company."

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) causes "cold sores", the incidence of which is second only to the common cold (100 million recurrences annually in the US alone). In addition, genital herpes prevalence is 67 million infected individuals in the US alone. HSV also causes keratitis, a disease of the eye (250,000 US cases/year).

Existing therapies include acyclovir and drugs chemically related to it. These drugs, nucleoside analogs, act by inhibiting viral DNA synthesis. However, there is known drug toxicity due to interference with human metabolism. Currently, there is no cure for herpes infection.

Nanoviricides act by a novel and distinctly different mechanism compared to existing drugs. Nanoviricides are designed to mimic the human cell surface to which the virus binds. Our results suggest that a nanoviricide could become a highly sought after drug against HSV.

The market size for herpes simplex virus treatments is in excess of $2 billion annually.

About NanoViricides:

NanoViricides, Inc. (www.nanoviricides.com) is a development stage company that is creating special purpose nanomaterials for viral therapy. The Company's novel nanoviricide(TM) class of drug candidates are designed to specifically attack enveloped virus particles and to dismantle them. The Company is developing drugs against a number of viral diseases including H1N1 swine flu, H5N1 bird flu, seasonal Influenza, HIV, oral and genital herpes, viral diseases of the eye including EKC, Hepatitis C, Rabies, Dengue fever, and Ebola virus, among others.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that reflect the Company's current expectation regarding future events. Actual events could differ materially and substantially from those projected herein and depend on a number of factors. Certain statements in this release, and other written or oral statements made by NanoViricides, Inc. are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements since they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which are, in some cases, beyond the Company's control and which could, and likely will, materially affect actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements for any reason, or to update the reasons actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements, even if new information becomes available in the future. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the company's expectations include, but are not limited to, those factors that are disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in documents filed by the company from time to time with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory authorities. Although it is not possible to predict or identify all such factors, they may include the following: demonstration and proof of principle in pre-clinical trials that a nanoviricide is safe and effective; successful development of our product candidates; our ability to seek and obtain regulatory approvals, including with respect to the indications we are seeking; the successful commercialization of our product candidates; and market acceptance of our products.

    Source: NanoViricides, Inc.