TUCSON, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 2, 2005--ImaRx Therapeutics Inc. announced today that is has received a $1.1 million Phase II SBIR grant from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), for the development of targeted nanobubbles that can be used in conjunction with ultrasound for NanoInvasive(TM) treatment of vascular clots.

Clinical studies of ImaRx's lead product candidate, SonoLysis(TM), have demonstrated the power of nanobubbles in conjunction with ultrasound to break up blood clots. Under the NHLBI grant award, the company will develop new, highly selective nanobubbles for targeted thrombus treatment in patients suffering from heart attack (myocardial infarction or MI).

"Selectivity through targeted delivery is the key to the development of more effective and safer alternatives to current treatment paradigms," said Terry Matsunaga, Pharm.D., Ph.D., vice president research, ImaRx. "Because they are designed to find areas of thrombosis, where they are activated by ultrasound waves to mechanically break apart clots, our targeted nanobubbles in conjunction with ultrasound are a potentially safer option for MI treatment than standard of care treatments such as lytic drugs and emergency thrombectomies."

Under the terms of the grant, ImaRx will collaborate under a subcontract with Dr. Thomas Porter, M.D., cardiologist, University of Nebraska Medical Center, an authority in the development of nanobubble technologies, to test the nanobubbles with ultrasound in models of myocardial infarction. In addition, Dr. Flemming Forsberg, Ph.D., professor, department of radiology, Thomas Jefferson University, will perform in vitro ultrasound studies of ImaRx's targeted nanobubbles in conjunction with ultrasound.

"We are pleased that ImaRx was selected to receive this grant from the NHLBI to support our ongoing development and clinical evaluation of targeted nanobubbles for treatment of cardiovascular diseases," said Evan Unger, M.D., president and CEO of ImaRx. "Grants such as these are a nondilutive source of financing and enable us to continue building our NanoInvasive(TM) medicines franchise within the company's areas of strategic focus."

About ImaRx and NanoInvasive Medicine

ImaRx, a privately held biopharmaceutical company, develops NanoInvasive(TM) therapies for the treatment of cardiovascular disease, CNS disease, and cancers. The company's lead product, SonoLysis(TM), combines the power of ultrasound with proprietary nanobubbles to locally dissolve blood clots without the use of invasive surgery or potentially dangerous lytic drugs. SonoLysis is currently in a Phase II study for stroke and a Phase I/II study for peripheral arterial occlusive disease

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