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SOUTH PLAINFIELD, N.J., Sept. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- PTC Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: PTCT) is pleased to announce the recipients of the Company's 2016 global STRIVE Awards (Strategies to Realize Innovation, Vision and Empowerment) program, designed to support nonprofit organizations serving the Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) community. The announcement is made as the international DMD community marks World Duchenne Awareness Day.

"We are delighted to present our STRIVE Awards to these organizations, who play an incredibly important role in supporting and improving the lives of boys and young men with Duchenne muscular dystrophy," said Stuart W. Peltz, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer, PTC Therapeutics, Inc. "We are pleased that our support through STRIVE can help patient groups bring to life ideas with tremendous potential to benefit the Duchenne community."

The impact of the STRIVE Awards will be felt across four different continents, with awards granted to patient organizations in Australia, India, Norway and the United States.

Australia: Muscular Dystrophy Queensland will help young adults with DMD share their experiences, advice and guidance with younger patients first-hand via a variety of engaging podcasts and materials

India: The Dystrophy Annihilation Research Trust (DART) mobile unit will take to the road to raise awareness of DMD, provide counseling and offer medical assistance and advice to patients and families who are unable to travel long distances to clinics    

Norway: Foreningen for Muskelsyke (FFM) will run a residential weekend course to educate boys about the benefits of healthy eating, provide practical advice around personal care and increase their self-esteem

United States: CureDuchenne will launch the Virtual Durable Medical Equipment Expo, an innovative, interactive education and networking platform for caregivers and family members who want to help loved ones with DMD stay healthy and mobile for longer

Award entries were submitted by 26 organizations across 15 countries. An independent panel of external experts with knowledge in rare diseases, patient advocacy and funding initiatives judged entries for innovation, vision and empowerment. Each of the winning organizations will receive a grant to make their proposed project a reality.

PTC began the STRIVE program for DMD in 2015. For complete information about the program and each award recipient, please visit the STRIVE website: http://www.ptcbio.com/en/about-ptc/ptc-strive-awards-program/.

DMD is a rare genetic disorder that results in progressive muscle weakness from early childhood, with subsequent loss of lower and then upper body function. Most children with DMD are wheelchair-bound by their early teens. PTC established the STRIVE awards program to support initiatives that will benefit the DMD community by increasing awareness, diagnosis and education, and fostering the development of future patient advocates.

"We have been truly inspired by the creativity and passion demonstrated through the award entries we received," said Mary Frances Harmon, Global Head of Patient Advocacy, PTC Therapeutics, Inc. "With patients at the center of everything we do, PTC shares the commitment of these patient organizations. We feel confident that this year's winning entries will have a positive, lasting impact on the lives of many people affected by Duchenne muscular dystrophy."

In addition, PTC has launched its disease awareness website, DuchenneAndYou.com to engage the broader DMD community and provide valuable information regarding the disease state.  It was recently launched in English for North America and translations are now available in Arabic, English (UK), French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and Turkish.   

About Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Primarily affecting males, Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a progressive muscle disorder caused by the lack of functional dystrophin protein. Dystrophin is critical to the structural stability of skeletal, diaphragm, and heart muscles. Patients with DMD lose the ability to walk in their early teens and experience life-threatening lung and heart complications in their late teens and twenties. It is estimated that nonsense mutations account for approximately 13% of DMD cases.

About PTC Therapeutics

PTC is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of orally administered, proprietary small molecule drugs targeting an area of RNA biology we refer to as post-transcriptional control. Post-transcriptional control processes are the regulatory events that occur in cells during and after a messenger RNA, or mRNA, molecule is copied from DNA through the transcription process. PTC's internally discovered pipeline addresses multiple therapeutic areas, including rare disorders and oncology. PTC has discovered all of its compounds currently under development using its proprietary technologies. PTC plans to continue to develop these compounds both on its own and through selective collaboration arrangements with leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. For more information on the company, please visit our website www.ptcbio.com.  

For More Information:

Investors: 
Emily Hill 
+ 1 (908) 912-9327 
ehill@ptcbio.com

Media:  
Jane Baj 
+1 (908) 912-9167  
jbaj@ptcbio.com

Patient Organizations:  
Mary Frances Harmon 
+1 (908) 912-9205 or (866) 282-5873  
mharmon@ptcbio.com  

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SOURCE PTC Therapeutics, Inc.