NEURALSTEM AWARDED PHASE I SBIR CONTRACT TO SUPPORT RESEARCH INTO NEURAL STEM CELL THERAPY FOR SEVERE TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY

GERMANTOWN, Md., June 12 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Neuralstem, Inc. (Nasdaq:CUR), a biopharmaceutical company developing novel treatments for nervous system diseases, today announced that it has been awarded a Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract by the Department of Defense (DoD). The award of $150,000 will support the Company’s ongoing efforts to develop its NSI-566 human neural stem cell line as a candidate therapeutic for severe Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).
 
It is estimated that approximately 3-5 million people in the United States have a disability resulting from TBI, with rehabilitative therapy currently serving as the primary treatment method. The research supported by the SBIR contract will facilitate the progress of Neuralstem’s ongoing collaboration with the research group of Dr. Ross Bullock, MD, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Neurological Surgery and Director, Clinical Neurotrauma at the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis. This research is intended to culminate in the filing of an IND application to conduct clinical trials in TBI.
 
“We are very pleased and appreciative that the DoD has chosen to fund this project,” said Rich Daly, President and CEO of Neuralstem. “Severe TBI represents a significant unmet medical need, and we are excited to continue our preclinical studies to establish the therapeutic potential of neural stem cells in this indication.”
 
About Neuralstem

Neuralstem is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel treatments for nervous system diseases of high unmet medical need. The Company has two lead development candidates:

• NSI-189, is a small molecule with pro-cognitive activity that is in clinical development for major depressive disorder and in preclinical development for Angelman syndrome, irradiation-induced cognitive impairment, diabetic neuropathy, and stroke.

• NSI-566 is a stem cell therapy in clinical testing for treatment of paralysis in stroke, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), and chronic spinal cord injury (cSCI). NSI-566 has been shown to confer neurological improvement upon transplantation to patients with spinal cord injury (Link) and confers functional benefit upon transplantation to patients with ALS (Link).
 
Neuralstem’s diversified portfolio of product candidates is based on its proprietary neural stem cell technology.
 
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Information
 
This news release contains “forward-looking statements” made pursuant to the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements relate to future, not past, events and may often be identified by words such as “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “seek” or “will.” Forward-looking statements by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. Specific risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed in our forward-looking statements include risks inherent in the development and commercialization of potential products, uncertainty of clinical trial results or regulatory approvals or clearances, need for future capital, dependence upon collaborators and maintenance of our intellectual property rights. Actual results may differ materially from the results anticipated in these forward-looking statements. Additional information on potential factors that could affect our results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in Neuralstem’s periodic reports, including the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and in other reports filed with the SEC. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
 
Contact:
Kimberly Minarovich
Argot Partners (Investor Relations)
212-600-1902
neuralstem@argotpartners.com 
 
SOURCE: Neuralstem, Inc.
 
--BERNAMA