BioLineRx to Present at 15th International Celiac Disease Symposium

JERUSALEM, Aug. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- BioLineRx (NASDAQ: BLRX) (TASE: BLRX), a biopharmaceutical development company, announced today that its abstract entitled "BL-7010: Non-Absorbable Polymeric Sequestering Agent for Celiac Disease" was accepted for an oral presentation at the 15th International Celiac Disease Symposium, which will take place September 22-25, 2013 in Chicago. Yotam Nisemblat, Senior Drug Development Manager at BioLineRx, will present BL-7010 for the treatment of celiac as part of a session entitled, "The Non-Responsive Celiac: What's New?"

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"We are honored to present BL-7010 at the leading international celiac conference and are excited that the scientific and medical communities share our enthusiasm for this promising and unique product," stated Dr. Kinneret Savitsky, Chief Executive Officer of BioLineRx. "Despite the unmet medical need and the huge size of the celiac market, there is currently no treatment for the disease apart from a lifelong gluten-free diet, which is extremely difficult to maintain."

"We look forward to commencing a Phase 1/2 study for BL-7010 by the end of this year. The CRO and treatment sites in Europe have already been selected, and we are in the midst of preparing the necessary regulatory submissions for the study," concluded Dr. Savitsky.

About BL-7010
BL-7010 is a novel, non-absorbable, orally available polymer intended for the treatment of celiac disease. It has a high affinity for gliadins, the immunogenic peptides present in gluten that cause celiac disease. By sequestering gliadins, BL-7010 effectively masks them from enzymatic degradation and prevents the formation of immunogenic peptides that trigger the immune system. The BL-7010-gliadin complex is eventually excreted from the digestive tract, preventing the absorption of gliadins into the blood. This significantly reduces the immune response triggered by gluten. The safety and efficacy of BL-7010 was demonstrated in pre-clinical studies. BL-7010 was invented by Prof. Jean-Christophe Leroux from the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, ETH Zurich, in Zurich, Switzerland and is being developed by BioLineRx under a worldwide exclusive license agreement with Univalor.

About Celiac Disease
Celiac disease is a chronic, autoimmune, inflammatory disease of the small intestine characterized by damage to the lining of the small intestine and typically leads to dyspepsia, malabsorption and a variety of other symptoms. It occurs in genetically predisposed individuals and is caused by an immunological reaction to gluten, found in wheat, barley and rye. Estimates suggest that 1% of the world's population is affected by celiac disease, and prevalence is expected to increase dramatically with improved diagnosis and awareness of the disease. The celiac market is projected to reach $8 billion by 2019. Today there are no pharmacological agents approved for celiac disease and the only treatment option is a life-long, strict, gluten-free diet, which is difficult to maintain both due to food contamination with gluten, as well as eating habits in a social setting.

About BioLineRx
BioLineRx is a publicly-traded biopharmaceutical development company dedicated to building a portfolio of products for unmet medical needs, as well as those with advantages over currently available therapies. The Company in-licenses novel compounds primarily from academic institutions and biotech companies based in Israel, develops them through pre-clinical and/or clinical stages, and then partners with pharmaceutical companies for advanced clinical development and/or commercialization.

BioLineRx's current portfolio consists of a variety of clinical and pre-clinical projects, including: BL-1040 for prevention of pathological cardiac remodeling following a myocardial infarction, which has been out-licensed to Ikaria Inc. and is in the midst of a pivotal CE-Mark registration trial; BL-5010 for non-surgical removal of skin lesions, which is expected to commence a pivotal CE-mark registration trial in late 2013; BL-8040 for treating acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and other hematological cancers, which is in the midst of a Phase 2 study; and BL-7010 for celiac disease, which is expected to commence a Phase 1/2 study in late 2013.

For more information on BioLineRx, please visit www.biolinerx.com or download the investor relations mobile device app, which allows users access to the Company's SEC documents, press releases, and events. BioLineRx's IR app is available on the iTunes App Store as well as the Google Play Store.

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Tsipi Haitovsky
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SOURCE BioLineRx