SIRT Sierra Natl BK Tehachapi Calif (MM)

Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRT), a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing small molecule drugs to treat diseases of aging such as Type 2 Diabetes, announced that it will be presenting at the American Chemical Society annual meeting in New Orleans on Monday, April 7 at 7:00 pm EDT. Jean Bemis, Sirtris Associate Director of Chemistry, will present an abstract on the identification of novel small molecule activators of SIRT1, the founding member of the sirtuin family of enzymes associated with diseases of aging. Using high throughput mass spectrometry, Sirtris has identified new chemical entity (NCE) activators of SIRT1 that are chemically distinct from, and up to 1000 times more potent in in-vitro studies than resveratrol, the compound shown to reduce glucose and improve insulin sensitivity in preclinical studies. Sirtris� NCEs have been shown to lower glucose and improve insulin sensitivity in predictive pre-clinical models of Type 2 Diabetes. SIRT1 activators have the potential to be a frontline therapy for Type 2 Diabetes. Sirtris plans to have one of its NCEs in a Phase 1 human clinical safety trial in the first half of 2008. About Sirtris Pharmaceuticals Sirtris Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing proprietary, orally available, small molecule drugs with the potential to treat diseases associated with aging, including metabolic diseases such as Type 2 Diabetes. Our drug candidates are designed to mimic certain beneficial health effects of calorie restriction, without requiring a change in eating habits, by activation of sirtuins, a recently discovered class of enzymes that the Company believes control the aging process. Sirtris Pharmaceuticals is engaged in human clinical trials for Type 2 Diabetes, and is planning similar trials in cancer, another age-related disease. Sirtris is also engaged in a human clinical trial for MELAS, a mitochondrial disorder. The company's headquarters are in Cambridge, Massachusetts. This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include, but are not limited to, the potential therapeutic effects of SIRT1 activators including NCEs for diseases of aging, such as Type 2 Diabetes; the success of SIRT1 activators as therapies for diseases, such as Type 2 Diabetes; the progress and results of preclinical and clinical studies of SIRT1 activators, such as SRT501 and Sirtris� NCEs; and the potential of sirtuin modulators to receive regulatory approval. These forward-looking statements about future expectations, plans and prospects of Sirtris Pharmaceuticals involve significant risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including risks related to the lack of results that would provide a basis for predicting whether any of the Company's product candidates will be safe or effective, or receive regulatory approval, the possibility that results of pre-clinical studies are not necessarily predictive of clinical trial results, the Company's potential inability to initiate and complete pre-clinical studies and clinical trials for its product candidates, the fact that none of the Company's product candidates has received regulatory approvals, the potential inability of the Company to gain market acceptance of the Company's product candidates, and those other risks factors that can be found in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results may differ materially from those Sirtris Pharmaceuticals contemplated by these forward-looking statements. Sirtris Pharmaceuticals does not undertake to update any of these forward-looking statements to reflect a change in its views or events or circumstances that occur after the date of this release.