APEPTICO supplies SOLNATIDE Investigational Medicinal Product to the

APEPTICO Forschung & Entwicklung Mariahilferstraße 136, Top 1.15 1150 Vienna, Austria Phone: +43-664-1432919 Fax: +43-1-25330337795 URL: www.apeptico.com PRESS RELEASE APEPTICO supplies SOLNATIDE Investigational Medicinal Product to the Medical University Vienna for the assessment of efficacy in COVID-19 patients Vienna, Austria, 4th May, 2020: APEPTICO Forschung und Entwicklung GmbH today announced th at it has supplied its Investigational Medicinal Product solnatide to the Medical University Vienna for the assessment of efficacy in COVID-19 patients. The Department of Clinical Pharmacology has initiated a Phase II placebo controlled randomised study to explore the efficacy of solnatide IMP in SARS-CoV-2 positive patients with moderate-to-severe ARDS and pulmonary permeability oedema. APEPTICO is a privately -held biotechnology company from Vienna/Austria, developing peptide -based medicinal products to tr eat life-threatening pulmonary dysfunctions, such as severe respiratory failure, oedematous respiratory failure (lung oedema), acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), primary graft dysfunction (PGD) following lung transplantation, high altitude pulmona ry oedema (HAPE) and pseudohypoaldosteronism type 1B (PHA1B). Clinical data gathered so far from hospitalised patients suffering from COVID -19 have revealed that 20% suffer from ARDS , and the inv olvement of pulmonary oedema is evidenced by post -mortem sampling of a patient who succumbed to COVID -19 infection. The observed mortality rate for ARDS ranges from 16% t o 60 %. At present no medicine has been approved specifically for the therapeutic treatment of ARDS and pulmonary permeability oedema in ARDS. APEPTICO’s lead compound, the therapeutic molecule solnatide (INN) is being developed by APEPTICO for the treatment of various forms of life -threatening acute pulmonary dysfunction and pulmonary o edema in ARDS pa tients. In 2013, A PEPTICO s uccessfully completed a p hase I clinical study in healthy subjects, proving the safety of solnatide. APEPTICO subsequently successfully completed two phase II clinical studies, one a randomized, double-blinded placebo-controlled trial using inhaled solnatide in mechanically-ventilated ARDS patients with lung oedema, the other a randomized, placebo-controlled pilot study in patients suffering from primary graft dysfunction (PGD) following lung transplantation. Commenting o n the agreement with the Medical University Vienna, Bernhard Fischer, CEO of APEPTICO, stated: "We are very happy supplying our solnatide development drug to the Department of Clinical Pharmacology of the Medical Univers ity Vienna. According to the EU Clinical Tri als Register, APEPTICO’s solnatide IMP is the only active ongoing campaign against ARDS in the Europe which assesses an innovative and new therapeutic compound that already delivered proof -of-concept results in two clinical studies in patients with severe lung dysfunctions.” The clinical study at the Medic al University Vienna has been submitted for co-funding within the framework of the Corona Emergency Call to the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG). ENDS About APEPTICO APEPTICO Forschung un d Entwicklung GmbH (“APEPTICO”) is a privately-held development stage biotechnology company with office in Vienna, Austria, developing peptide-based products targeting life- threatening pulmonary diseases, including oedematous respirat ory failure, acute lun g injury, primary graft dysfunction, high altitud e pulmonary oedema and PHA type 1. The peptide molecules correspond to validated, pharmacodynamic active structures and domains of proteins and b iopharmaceuticals. By concentrating on s ynthetically produced protein structures APEPTICO avoids general risks associated with gene - and c ell-technologies. APEPTICO makes use of its technology platforms PEPBASE(TM) and PEPSCREEN(TM) to significantly reduce cost and to shorten time to market. About solnatide Solnatide (laboratory code AP301) is a synthetic molecule whose structure is based on the lectin-like domain of human Tumour Necrosis Factor alpha. Solnatide is water soluble and can be administered as aerosol (small droplets of diameter 3 μm or less) directly into the lungs of patients by oral inhalation. Solnatide IMP has been designed for activation of the pulmonary epithelial sodium channel (ENaC) and for the restoration of the injured endothelial-epithelial barrier of pulmonary alveoli. APEPTICO’s investigational compound solnatide (INN) was originally designed for the therapeutic treatment of patients with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) and various forms of life - threatening pulmonary permeability oedema (PPO). Orally inhaled solnatide IMP has completed a first- in-man (FIM) Phase I clinical study (EUDRACT No. 2011-000223-33), and has delivered clinical proof- of-concept in a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blinded Phase II clinical stud y (EUDRACT No. 2012-001863-64) as we ll as in a Phas e II pilot study ( EUDRACT No. 2013 -000716-21) in patient s suffering from pneumonia, sepsis, ARDS, Primary Graft Dysfunction, and other causes of life - threatening pulmonary dysfunction. Solnatide IMP has been designated an orphan medicinal product in the European Union for the therapeutic indication “Treatment of Acute Lung Injury (ARDS)”. Involvement of ARDS in severe cases of COVID-19 ARDS plays a major, if not the major role in the morbidity and mortality on COVI D-19 patients. Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is characterized by acute lung injury, noncardiogenic pulmonary oedema and severe hypoxia. Several studies reporting the clinical progression and characteristics in hospitalized COVID-19 patients have focusse d on the prevale nce of AR DS amongst these patients and particularly amongst the more severe cases . From these studies we see that one fifth to one third of hospitalized COVID -19 patients developed ARDS . O ne fifth to one third of hospitalized patients suffering from COVID-19 required transfer to the ICU unit. Amongst COVID-19 patients requiring ICU treatment approximately two thirds suffer from life-threatening ARDS. Estimates of the mortality rate amongst COVID-19 ICU patients ranges from 16.7% to 61%- About the Department of Clinical Pharmacology The Department of Clinical Pharmacology, founded in 1992, is a clinical institution at the Medical University of Vienna. Due to its close co llaboration with other clinical and diagnostic divisions and departments of the Med Uni Vienna and Vienna General Hospital, one of the largest medical centers in Europe, it has access to a wide range of medical and scientific resources. Contact Prof. Dr. Bernhard Fischer, CEO APEPTICO Forschung und Entwicklung GmbH Mariahilferstraße 136, Top 1.1.5 1150 Vienna, Austria T: +43-664-1432919 F: +43-1-25330337795 E-mail: [email protected] URL: www.apeptico.com

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