CytoDyn has signed a letter of intent with Timeway International for a joint venture in China to develop Cytolin, CytoDyn's targeted immune therapy for HIV/AIDS.
Timeway International has its principle offices in Phoenix, Hong Kong, Bejing, and Shanghai. It has joined with a select few U.S. biotech firms in order to bring a variety of advanced, non-competing medical technologies to China.
Cytolin is the first targeted immune therapy for HIV/AIDS that was shown to significantly reduce viral burden in preliminary human studies. The potential advantage is that Cytolin exerts its effect on the immune system and not the virus. As a result, a species of virus resistant to the effects of Cytolin(R) cannot emerge through natural selection because the drug has no effects on the virus itself.
In addition to providing an additional treatment for the disease, Cytolin might extend the useful life of the antiretroviral drugs currently used to treat HIV/AIDS.
Allen D. Allen, Chairman and CEO of CytoDyn, has given a high priority to helping people who are living with AIDS in the developing nations. The anticipated joint venture between CytoDyn and Timeway is an important step forward in that direction, according to Allen. CytoDyn will be represented in the Asian Markets by its consultant Huey Hua.
The joint venture will still have to be approved by the governments of both the U.S. and China, and neither company has completed its due diligence.
