PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Dr. Hanno Roder
TauTaTis, Inc.
Tel.: +1-904-220-1283
Fax: +1-904-221-6013

E-mail: hanno.roder@tautatis.net
URL: www.tautatis.com
PDF: March 2009 press release

TauTaTis Discovers Potent Inhibitor of Parkinson's Disease Gene Activity

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., March 16 /PRNewswire/ -- TauTaTis, Inc. announces that its lead compound for inhibition of tau protein pathology, the specific neurodegenerative process in Alzheimer's Disease, has been recognized as the most potent inhibitor of the activity of the Parkinson's Disease gene LRRK2 reported to date. Mutations of this gene are believed to increase its activity, and are the most genetic frequent cause of Parkinson's Disease.

TauTaTis' lead compound is a proprietary small molecule that has shown good tolerability in small animals with chronic oral dosing, and enters the brain at therapeutically relevant concentrations. It is therefore a promising development candidate for two of the most important degenerative neurological conditions of the aged population.

Parkinson's Disease is the second most common progressive neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer's Disease. About 1 million patients are living with Parkinson's Disease in the US. Symptoms progress from tremor to progressive loss of movement control and rigidity. In some instances the disease may progress further to dementia, sometimes involving the type of neurodegeneration seen in Alzheimer's Disease. Most cases are not obviously linked to genetic mutations, but about 10% of the cases are inherited. Several genes have been identified as drivers of the disease, with LRRK2 being the most prominent.

Current treatments of Parkinson's Disease help to offset symptoms for a limited period of time, but do not alter the prognosis of the disease, which would require to stop the loss of nerve cells, a feat not accomplished in any neurodegenerative disorder to date.

"LRRK2 is one of the most promising targets to fundamentally address a vexing disorder that has not seen any improvements of the therapeutic standard in a long time. This exciting discovery significantly broadens the scope of our lead development program, which targets the biological basis of neurodegenerative disease. It also suggests that there may be underlying commonalities in seemingly disparate disorders. Based on encouraging data for our lead compound in several therapeutic areas the company will seek to access several translational grant mechanisms for further development. If successful, funds of up to $2.5 million could become available from such sources by summer or fall of 2009." comments Dr. Hanno Roder, Founder, Chairman and CEO of TauTaTis, Inc.

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TauTaTis, Inc. (http://www.tautatis.com) is an early stage company centered on the preclinical and clinical development of compounds, which directly interfere with aberrant biochemical processes in degenerating nerve cells. Its lead compound is the result of an optimization process conducted over more than a decade involving an integrated process of research into disease mechanisms, extensive target profiling, model development and medicinal chemistry.