WEST BRIDGEWATER, Mass., Aug. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pressure BioSciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: PBIO) today announced that during June and July it installed its first three Bench Top (NEP3229) PCT Sample Preparation Systems (PCT SPS) under a strategic "reagent rental program," whereby the collaborating sites have full use of the instruments, will purchase a certain number of PULSE(TM) Tubes during the trial period, and have agreed to publicly disseminate and share data generated with the PCT SPS.
During the past two years, PBI has worked with Source Scientific, LLC, an instrument design and development company in which PBI maintains a 30% equity interest, to design a pressure-generating instrument (Barocycler(TM)) that was smaller, lighter, more portable, and less expensive than the Company's first Barocycler, the Floor Model NEP2017. However, notwithstanding these valuable features, this new Bench Top Model is still expected to offer the same level of reproducibility, versatility, speed, and safety of the larger Barocycler NEP2017. Source Scientific and PBI completed the design of the Bench Top Barocycler NEP3229 earlier this year, completed the manufacture of the first seven units in June (two for internal use), and expects to complete the manufacture of an additional eleven units by September 2005.
In an effort to increase market awareness of the new Bench Top PCT SPS, in June 2005 the Company initiated a program to place up to twelve Barocycler NEP3229 Sample Preparation Systems in selected, strategic customer sites in North America for a trial period of approximately three months. The Company believes that this period of time will provide customers with the opportunity to generate sufficient comparative data and other information that will lead to either a purchase or a lease of the Barocycler NEP3229 PCT SPS at the end of the trial period.
As reported above, three Bench Top Systems have been placed at strategic sites over the past two months. One site is a major US government cancer research institute; another is a leading Canadian university working in forensics, environmental issues, and infectious diseases; and the third is a US medical school laboratory performing basic and esoteric proteomic studies for life science researchers nationwide.
In addition, the Company has received a commitment to purchase a Bench Top PCT SPS from a major US government research facility, and has received a commitment from a state university in New England to lease another Bench Top PCT SPS for a period of one year. Both of these organizations were targeted for the three month trial program, but chose to purchase or lease the Bench Top System after a demonstration of its capabilities. These two Bench Top Systems are expected to be installed before September 30, 2005.
Richard T. Schumacher, Founder, President, and CEO of Pressure BioSciences, commented: "Over the past year, we have succeeded in developing an automated, versatile, portable, rapid, and safe PCT-based bench top sample preparation system, which we believe will fill an immediate and virtually unmet need in the field of genomics and proteomics. We have also been successful in developing an infrastructure for PBI, with the hiring of a seasoned CFO, an experienced director of sales, and two top level scientists with expertise in molecular biology and proteomics. These are exciting times for our Company."
About Pressure BioSciences, Inc.
Following the sale of substantially all the assets and selected liabilities of its BBI Diagnostics and BBI Biotech Divisions to SeraCare Life Sciences, Inc. on September 14, 2004, Boston Biomedica, Inc. changed its name to Pressure BioSciences, Inc (PBI). PBI is a publicly traded, early-stage company focused on the development of a novel technology called Pressure Cycling Technology (PCT). PCT uses cycles of hydrostatic pressure between ambient and ultra-high levels (up to 35,000 psi and greater) to control bio- molecular interactions. PBI currently holds 13 US and 4 foreign patents covering multiple applications of PCT in the life sciences field, including in such areas as genomic and proteomic sample preparation, pathogen inactivation, control of enzymes, immunodiagnostics, and protein purification. PBI owns a 30% passive investment in Source Scientific, LLC, an instrumentation company that develops and manufactures PBI's PCT equipment, as well as a passive investment in VI Technologies, an antiviral drug discovery and development company.
Forward Looking Statements
Statements contained in this press release regarding the Company's intentions, hopes, beliefs, expectations or predictions of the future are "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements relating to the anticipated benefits of the Bench Top PCT SPS, the expectation that customers will purchase or lease the Bench Top PCT SPS following trial periods of the units, and the anticipated timing of completion for manufacturing additional units and delivering units for which the Company has received commitments. These statements are based upon the Company's current expectations, forecasts, and assumptions that are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties, and other factors include, but are not limited to: fluctuations in the Company's financial and operating results, which could adversely affect the Company's cash flow; uncertainties inherent in the development of new products, including the Company's new Bench Top PCT instrument, including technical risks, cost overruns, and manufacturing and other delays; the risk that newly introduced products may contain undetected errors or defects or otherwise not perform as anticipated; the risk that that Company's products will not achieve market acceptance; the risk that the Company will not be able to increase demand or sales for its products; the risk that the Company will not sell or lease one or both of the Bench Top Systems for which it has already received a commitment to purchase and a commitment to lease; the risk that the Company will not receive any or all of the remaining funds held in escrow in connection with the SeraCare transaction; the risk that the Company will face adverse changes in the Company's liquidity and capital resources; the risk that the Company will be unable to attract and retain qualified personnel; declines in the market price of the Company's common stock; declines in the market price of VI Technologies common stock; the risk that the Company's shares of VI Technologies common stock held in escrow may not be released to the Company in September 2006; the risk that loans from the Company may not be repaid; changes in the capital markets; competition; general and industry-specific economic conditions; and the other risks and uncertainties discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-KSB for the year ended December 31, 2004 and other reports filed by the Company from time to time with the SEC. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any of the information included in this release, except as otherwise required by law.
Visit us at our website http://www.pressurebiosciences.com.
Investor Contacts:
Richard T. Schumacher, President & CEO
Pressure BioSciences, Inc.
R. Wayne Fritzsche, Chairman
(508) 580-1818 (T)
SOURCE Pressure BioSciences, Inc.
-0- 08/15/2005
/CONTACT: Richard T. Schumacher, President & CEO, or R. Wayne Fritzsche,
Chairman, both of Pressure BioSciences, Inc., +1-508-580-1818/
/Web site: http://www.pressurebiosciences.com /
(PBIO)
CO: Pressure BioSciences, Inc.
ST: Massachusetts
IN: BIO MTC
SU:
NJ-CP
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2172 08/15/2005 09:59 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com