FIRM MAKES PROGRESS IN PRODUCING SICKLE CELL DRUG IN NIGERIA

Xechem International announced that its subsidiary Xechem Pharmaceuticals Nigeria expects to soon be able to scale up production of its drug for sickle cell disease with the arrival of new equipment.

Nigerian regulatory authorities approved Xechem's drug, Nicosan, for the prophylactic management of sickle cell disease midway through last year. The company is in the process of building a production facility in Nigeria and is currently producing the drug in a small scale. The company's current facility recently passed an unannounced inspection by the Nigerian regulators.

"We have sufficient raw materials on hand to handle this increase in production and are poised to begin operations of the full scale commercial manufacturing facility when construction is completed during the fourth quarter of this year," Ramesh Pandey, Xechem chairman and CEO, said.

Nicosan, developed by Nigerian scientists, has been shown to substantially reduce the degree of sickling in red blood cells. While not a cure, the clinical trials have confirmed that the large majority of patients taking the drug no longer experience sickle cell crises. The drug has received orphan drug designation in the U.S. and Europe.