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Posted at: AOL Business NeoTherapeutics Completes Site Selection for Neotrofin(TM) Phase 2 Parkinson's Disease Trial Patient enrollment accelerating with expanded program IRVINE, Calif., Aug. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- NeoTherapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: <A HREF="aol://4785:NEOT">NEOT</A>; NEOTW) announced today that it has expanded its Neotrofin phase 2 Parkinson's disease trial to include four additional clinical locations. New participants include Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island (Providence), Rush Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center (Chicago), The Parkinson's Institute (Sunnyvale, CA), and Oregon Health & Science University (Portland). Ten patients are currently receiving either Neotrofin or placebo, including seven patients at the Parkinson's and Movement Disorder Institute at Long Beach Memorial Hospital. "With site selection completed, we can now focus on enrolling the additional patients necessary to complete this clinical study," said F. Jacob Huff, M.D., Vice President, Medical Affairs of NeoTherapeutics. "We are fortunate to be working with some of the leading experts in the country in the treatment of Parkinson's disease, and we expect to gain insights into safety and dosing in Parkinson's patients from this study." "Neotrofin uses the body's own tools to protect, repair and rebuild nerves in the brain," stated Rajesh C. Shrotriya, M.D., President and Chief Operating Officer of NeoTherapeutics. "Our drug activates nerve growth factors, which in addition to helping repair nerves, cause the proliferation of stem cells that already exist in the brain. Additional growth factors stimulated by Neotrofin may then cause the differentiation and maturation of these new stem cells into new neurons, which could repair the damage done by neurodegenerative conditions such as Parkinson's disease." Patients participating in this trial will receive doses of Neotrofin escalating from 250 mg to 1,000 mg twice per day for twelve weeks. In addition to extensive assessments of tolerance and safety, the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS)-part III (Motor Scale) will be used as the primary measure of preliminary efficacy. Several other Parkinson's disease rating scales will be used as secondary efficacy measures. Parkinson's disease is one of the major neurodegenerative disorders affecting more than one million patients in North America alone. The principal hallmarks of Parkinson's disease are slowness of movement, rigidity and tremor. Although current treatments provide some symptomatic relief, Parkinson's disease progresses inexorably, often over 10 to 20 years, to severe immobility and a bedridden state. NeoTherapeutics seeks to create value for stockholders through the development of central nervous system drugs by its neurology division, in- licensing and development of anti-cancer drugs through its NeoOncoRx subsidiary, and the licensing out of new drug targets through its NeoGene Technologies subsidiary. The Company's most advanced drug, Neotrofin(TM), is currently being developed for Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson's disease and spinal cord injury. For additional information visit the Company's web site at www.neotherapeutics.com. This press release may contain forward-looking statements regarding future events and the future performance of NeoTherapeutics that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These risks are described in further detail in the Company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Contacts: MEDIA RELATIONS Jon Siegal Ronald Trahan Associates (RTA) Inc. (508) 647-9782, ext. 15 INVESTOR RELATIONS John McManus NeoTherapeutics, Inc. (949) 788-6700, ext. 247 MAKE YOUR OPINION COUNT - Click Here http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X72818987 SOURCE NeoTherapeutics, Inc. CO: NeoTherapeutics, Inc. ST: California IN: MTC SU: 08/23/2001 09:15 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn