27 Jun 2008 07:00
| For Immediate Release | 27 June 2008 |
MINSTER PHARMACEUTICALS PLC
("Minster" or "the Company")
American Headache Society 50th Scientific Meeting
Minster Pharmaceuticals plc (AIM: MPM), the drug development company specialising in neurological and psychiatric disorders, is pleased to announce that a scientific paper on tonabersat, the Company's lead programme in migraine prevention, will be the subject of a presentation today at the 50th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Headache Society (AHS) currently being held in Boston, Massachusetts.
Dr Paul L Durham, an Associate Professor at Missouri State University, will present a paper entitled Tonabersat Inhibits Trigeminal Ganglion Neuronal-Satellite Glial Cell Signalling at 2.00pm EST. Dr Durham's presentation will focus on pre-clinical mechanistic research into the ability of tonabersat to modulate communication via gap junctions between nerve cells and glial cells, providing further insight into the compound's novel mode of action.
An abstract of the paper is available via the website of the AHS. To view the abstract, please visit http://www.ahsevents.org/assets/01_AHS008_Abstracts.pdf and scroll to abstract OR09.
Tonabersat, the rights to which are owned by Minster, is the most advanced compound in a new class of drugs called neuronal gap junction blockers, which is understood have the ability to block channels formed between nerve cells and glial cells. These channels are implicated in a significant number of neurological conditions including migraine, neuropathic pain, and epilepsy.
Paul Sharpe, Minster Pharmaceuticals' Chief Executive, said: "Dr Durham's work provides us with a much greater insight into tonabersat's mode of action. It is increasingly becoming clear that abnormal activity at gap junctions underlies a range of neurological conditions, implying significant potential for a compound such as tonabersat that is capable of modulating that activity."
For further information:
| Minster Pharmaceuticals plc | Tel: +44 (0) 1799 506623 |
| Paul Sharpe, Chief Executive Officer | |
| Robert Aubrey, Chief Financial Officer | |
| Buchanan Communications | Tel: +44 (0) 20 7466 5000 |
| Mark Court | |
| Rebecca Skye Dietrich | |
| Nomura Code Securities Limited | Tel: +44 (0) 20 7776 1200 |
| Richard Potts | |
| Gerard Harper |
Notes for editors:
About Minster Pharmaceuticals plc
Minster Pharmaceuticals is a drug development company focussed on neurological and psychiatric disorders. Its principal pipeline assets are tonabersat, under development in the preventive treatment of migraine, and sabcomeline in schizophrenia. Worldwide rights to both compounds were acquired from GlaxoSmithKline and the compounds benefit from comprehensive safety tolerance data as a result of investment by GSK.
Tonabersat is the leading compound in an exciting new class of selective drugs designated as neuronal gap junction blockers and offers the potential to prevent the onset of migraine as a preferred alternative to acute treatment. Sabcomeline, a muscarinic partial agonist, has potential in the treatment of chronic schizophrenia.
Minster's near-term focus is on the development and commercialisation of its current pipeline. Its medium term strategy is to leverage the anticipated cashflows from the current pipeline by in-licensing further compounds with the ultimate objective of creating a substantial and highly efficient drug development enterprise focussed on the central nervous system.
Minster joined the AIM market in February 2005 and trades under the symbol MPM. For further information please visit www.minsterpharma.com .