WHO approves auriclosene as INN

Emeryville, CA-The World Health Organization (WHO) has approved the international nonproprietary name (INN) ”auriclosene” (pronounced awr-rih-CLO-zeen) for NovaBay Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s lead Aganocide compound NVC-422.

NovaBay’s proprietary Aganocides are the company’s first-in-class topical antimicrobial compounds, which are active against viruses, fungi, and bacteria, including the bacteria that grow and thrive under biofilm. Testing has shown that these non-systemic, non-antibiotic compounds do not give rise to bacterial or fungal resistance. Phase II studies for auriclosene are currently ongoing in ophthalmology, urology, and dermatology.

“Obtaining the INN for our lead clinical compound NVC-422 confirms that our clinical development is on track, and we anticipate progression into phase III development in each of our three Aganocide programs,” said Ron Najafi, PhD, chairman and chief executive officer, NovaBay. “We also intend to conduct a phase IIa proof-of-concept study for auriclosene in an additional ophthalmic indication.”

NovaBay is developing an eye drop formulation of NVC-422 for treating adenoviral conjunctivitis. Enrollment into a global phase IIb clinical study has begun, and clinical data results are expected in the second half of 2013.

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