ZIOPHARM Receives Second ZIO-101 Patent Issuance

ZIOPHARM Receives Second ZIO-101 Patent Issuance 73.9 KB ZIOPHARM Receives Second ZIO-101 Patent Issuance NEW YORK, NY - February 9, 2006 - ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. (OTC BB: ZIOP), announced today a second organic arsenic case has been issued as U.S. Patent No. 6995188. The patent issue follows an announcement of a notice of allowance in mid-January. The patent provides further coverage of cancer treatment using organic arsenic, including ZIO-101, in combination with other agents or therapies. "We believe we have broad intellectual property for our organic arsenic program, and the issuance of this patent is an important and timely development, as we have just treated the first patient in our ZIO-101 phase I/II trial in advanced myeloma," commented Jonathan Lewis, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer. "ZIO-101 has shown promising evidence of activity in ongoing phase I trials at doses substantially higher than those used with approved inorganic arsenic. Additional trials are in the advanced planning stages to build from our phase I and phase I/II studies." ZIO-101 is a small molecule in-licensed from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and Texas A&M University. It is currently in phase I/II clinical studies in patients with advanced myeloma. The Company also has a second organic arsenic, ZIO-102, undergoing preclinical study. Several other organic arsenic molecules (in-licensed with ZIO-101 and ZIO-102 and newly synthesized from the collaboration agreement with Texas A&M) have been identified as potential candidates. About ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development and commercialization of a diverse, risk-sensitive portfolio of in-licensed cancer drugs to address unmet medical needs. The Company applies new insights from molecular and cancer biology to understand the efficacy and safety limitations of approved and developmental cancer therapies and identifies proprietary and related molecules for better patient treatment. For more information, visit www.ziopharm.com . Forward-Looking Safe Harbor Statement: This press release contains forward-looking statements for ZIOPHARM Oncology, Inc. that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from the anticipated results and expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from these statements. Among other things, there can be no assurance that any of the Company's development efforts relating to its product candidates will be successful, or such product candidates will be successfully commercialized. Other risks that affect forward-looking information contained in this press release include the possibility of being unable to obtain regulatory approval of the Company's product candidates, the risk that the results of clinical trials may not support the Company's claims, and risks related to the Company's ability to protect its intellectual property and its reliance on third parties to develop its product candidates. The Company assumes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Contact: Kelly Luethje Manager, Investor Relations/Communication 617-259-1975

The release as fetched from its publisher. alaunos.com ↗