Cytheris Announces Publication of Preclinical Study in Journal of Immunology Showing Interleukin-7 Promotes T Cell Viability, Trafficking and Functionality While Improving Survival in Sepsis

Cytheris SA, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on research and development of new therapies for immune modulation, today announced publication of data from a preclinical study in a clinically relevant animal model of sepsis showing that recombinant human Interleukin-7 (rhIL-7) treatment not only restores T cell trafficking and function, but also translates into improved survival. Sepsis, a highly lethal disorder which occurs during severe overwhelming infection, is the most common cause of death in most intensive care units in developed countries, annually striking an estimated 750,000 people in the United States alone, resulting in the death of more than 220,000 people per year.

The paper entitled "IL-7 Promotes T Cell Viability, Trafficking and Functionality and Improves Survival in Sepsis" is prepublished online in The Journal of Immunology, the journal of The American Association of Immunologists (Jacqueline Unsinger, Margaret McGlynn, Kevin R. Kasten, Andrew S. Hoekzema, Eizo Watanabe, Jared T. Muenzer, Jacquelyn S. McDonough, Johannes Tschoep, Thomas A. Ferguson, Jonathan E. McDunn, Michel Morre, David A. Hildeman, Charles C. Caldwell, and Richard S. Hotchkiss, March 3, 2010; www.jimmunol.org/cgi/content/abstract/jimmunol.0903151v1).