CytoGenix Scientists Discover Unique Gene Knock-Down Sequence to Kill Resistant Staph Bacteria

HOUSTON, Texas -- CytoGenix Inc. announces that its researchers have identified and tested an anti-sense oligonucleotide sequence that will kill Staphylococcus aureus bacteria including vancomycin-resistant (VRSA) and methicillin-resistant (MRSA) strains. This achievement is part of CytoGenix's ongoing research and development program for a new generation of antimicrobial compounds designed to defeat the bacteria's natural defenses.

Infection by the new strains of resistant staph is a growing public health problem. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports, "Staph bacteria are one of the most common causes of skin infection in the United States, and are a common cause of pneumonia and bloodstream infections ... as many as 100,000 persons are hospitalized each year with MRSA infections, although only a small proportion of these persons have disease onset occurring in the community."

Johns Hopkins AIDS Service reports, "The emergence of CA-MRSA infections is an additional threat to the growing global public health crisis of antimicrobial resistance. Efforts to control MRSA infections can no longer depend solely on surveillance, infection control efforts, and judicious antibiotic prescribing practices within the hospital setting. Proactive patient education, aggressive diagnostic efforts, and effective treatment for CA-MRSA infections by outpatient clinicians, will not only improve patient care, but also protect our communities and hospitals from an increasingly prevalent pathogen."

Dr. Malcolm Skolnick, CytoGenix president and CEO, commented, "We continue to focus our scientific assets on addressing significant unmet medical needs such as multi-drug resistant bacterial infections. In 2005, we plan to accelerate the pace of drug discovery and product development of this and other antimicrobial compounds.

"We are at the point that by using our proprietary genomic techniques, we can screen for gene targets and develop effective compounds to inhibit disease-causing activity in a matter of months rather than the years required for traditional drug discovery. For this reason we have been able to readily isolate several lead drug candidates against these resistant bacteria strains," adds Skolnick.

CytoGenix Inc. is a Houston-based biopharmaceutical company that develops and markets innovative products and services based on its proprietary ssDNA expression technology. CytoGenix currently has one issued U.S. patent and 37 international or U.S. pending patent applications claiming methods and materials in connection with this platform technology.

Source: CytoGenix Inc.