ContraFect Announces Oral Presentations at the 30th European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID)

YONKERS, New York, Jan. 27, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ContraFect Corporation CFRX, a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of direct lytic agents (DLAs), including Lysins and Amurin peptides, as new medical modalities for the treatment of life-threatening, antibiotic-resistant infections, today announced that it has been granted two oral presentations at the 30th European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) to be held from April 18-21, 2020, in Paris, France.

The oral presentations include new data demonstrating the ability of the Company's lead compound, exebacase, to resensitize methicillin-resistant Staph aureus (MRSA) to methicillin-derivatives in an animal model of infective endocarditis. Exebacase is currently being studied in the Pivotal Phase 3 DISRUPT (Direct Lysis of Staph aureus Resistant Pathogen Trial) study of exebacase in patients with Staph aureus bacteremia, including right-sided endocarditis.

A second oral presentation will cover new data demonstrating the potent activity of the Company's lead Amurin peptides candidates against carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaciae, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, including extensively resistant strain that are also resistant to Colistin. These in vitro data strongly support the further preclinical development of these new modality agents, which demonstrate potent activity against some of the most extensively resistant human pathogenic strains of Gram-negative bacteria.  

"In December of last year, we initiated our Phase 3 superiority trial of exebacase. This single, pivotal study aims to further confirm the data from Phase 2 which showed that treatment with exebacase was associated with a 43% higher rate of clinical response, a 21 percentage point reduction in 30-day all-cause mortality, a four day reduction in length of hospital stay and meaningful reductions in hospital readmission rates in the prespecified MRSA subgroup. We are pleased to have demonstrated proof of concept for direct lytic agents in the Phase 2 study, which provides us with increased confidence as we bring entirely new classes of molecules rapidly to the clinic," said Cara Cassino, M.D., Chief Medical Officer and Executive Vice President of Research and Development at ContraFect.

Oral Presentations:

Presentation Title: First report of the discovery of amurin peptides: direct lytic agents with broad activity against carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaciae, Acinetobacter, and Pseudomonas, including colistin-resistant strains
Session Title: New insights on the therapeutic potential of bacteriophages

Presentation Title: Exebacase resensitises methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus to oxacillin in a rabbit model of infective endocarditis
Session Title: Drug combinations against multi-resistant bacteria

Presentation details will be released ahead of the conference. The abstracts can be accessed through the ECCMID website.

About ContraFect:

ContraFect is a biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing differentiated biologic therapies for life-threatening, drug-resistant infectious diseases, particularly those treated in hospital settings. An estimated 700,000 deaths worldwide each year are attributed to antimicrobial-resistant infections. We intend to address life threatening infections using our therapeutic product candidates from our platform of DLAs, which include lysins and amurin peptides. Lysins are a new class of DLAs which are recombinantly produced antimicrobial proteins with a novel mechanism of action associated with the rapid killing of target bacteria, eradication of biofilms and synergy with conventional antibiotics. Amurin peptides are a new class of DLAs, which exhibit broad-spectrum activity against a wide range of antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative pathogens, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa), Acinetobacter baumannii, and Enterobacter species. We believe that the properties of our lysins and amurin peptides will make them suitable for targeting antibiotic-resistant organisms, such as methicillin-resistant Staph aureus (MRSA) and P. aeruginosa, which can cause serious infections such as bacteremia, pneumonia and osteomyelitis. We have completed a Phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of Staph aureus bacteremia, including endocarditis, with our lead lysin candidate, exebacase, which is the first lysin to enter clinical studies in the U.S.

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Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains, and our officers and representatives may make from time to time, "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws.  Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as "projects," "may," "will," "could," "would," "should," "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "potential," "promise" or similar references to future periods. Examples of forward-looking statements in this release include, without limitation, statements regarding ContraFect's ability to discover and develop DLAs as new medical modalities for the treatment of life-threatening, antibiotic-resistant infections, statements made regarding the oral presentations, statements made by ContraFect's Chief Medical Officer, ContraFect's ability to address life threatening infections using its DLA platform,  whether lysins are a new class of DLAs which are recombinantly produced, antimicrobial proteins with a novel mechanism of action associated with the rapid killing of target bacteria, eradication of biofilms and synergy with conventional antibiotics, whether amurins exhibit broad-spectrum activity against a wide range of antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative pathogens and  whether the properties of ContraFect's lysins and amurins will make them suitable for targeting antibiotic-resistant organisms, such as Staph aureus and P. aeruginosa. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts, nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based on ContraFect's current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of its business, future plans, strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent risks, uncertainties and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond ContraFect's control, including those detailed under the caption "Risk Factors" in ContraFect's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ include, among others, our ability to develop treatments for drug-resistant infectious diseases. Any forward-looking statement made by ContraFect in this press release is based only on information currently available and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Except as required by applicable law, ContraFect expressly disclaims any obligations to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

Investor Relations Contacts:

Michael Messinger
ContraFect Corporation
Tel: 914-207-2300
Email: mmessinger@contrafect.com

Lauren Stival
Stern Investor Relations
Tel: 212-362-1200
Email: lauren.stival@sternir.com