Star Scientific Reports First Peer-Reviewed Article on Anatabine and Alzheimer's Disease by Roskamp Institute

GLEN ALLEN, Virginia, October 4, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

Star Scientific, Inc. (Nasdaq: CIGX) reports today the publication of the first peer-reviewed article on the in-vitro and in-vivo activity of anatabine in Alzheimer's Disease. The article is authored by scientists at the Roskamp Institute and is electronically published in the European Journal of Pharmacology (2011 Sept 19).  It states that anatabine lowers Alzheimer's A-beta production in-vitro and in-vivo.  

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In the article the authors describe the accumulation of an abnormal substance, called A-beta, the substance that leads to amyloid formation and damage to brain tissue. They studied the formation of A-beta and showed how anatabine lowers levels of two forms of A-beta (1-40 and 1-42) in a dose-dependent manner, possibly by preventing or reducing formation from the precursor protein. After showing the activity in the test tube, the researchers went on to show that when anatabine is given to mice vulnerable to accumulation of amyloid, treatment with anatabine lowers brain levels of both A-beta (1-40) and A-beta (1-42), postulated to be due to effects on NFKB activation. Michael Mullan, MD, Ph.D.,  Roskamp Institute co-director and one of the article's authors, commented, "This paper demonstrates anatabine's potential as an anti-inflammatory agent and shows it may have broad applications including for disorders like Alzheimer's Disease."

Anatabine citrate is one of the active ingredients in Anatabloc™, a dietary supplement developed by Star Scientific's subsidiary, Rock Creek Pharmaceuticals.  Anatabloc™, which entered the market on August 30,  is designed to provide anti-inflammatory support (http://www.anatabloc.com).  Curtis Wright, MD, MPH, Senior Vice President of Rock Creek Pharmaceuticals, expressed his opinion of the Roskamp findings. "While we were aware that Roskamp was conducting studies of the effects of dietary supplementation with anatabine in Alzheimer's Disease, it is gratifying that external peer review validated the work they have done. The research confirms that this natural plant compound shows an interesting regulatory effect on brain immune responses. It is one thing to believe your own results; it is quite another to have them accepted by your peers in the scientific community."  Anatabine for the Roskamp research was provided through Rock Creek Pharmaceuticals.

Ongoing human clinical studies of anatabine citrate, and the commercial product Anatabloc™, are examining the potential role of nutritional supplementation in regulating low-level inflammation controlled by the NFκB system.

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