WEST BRIDGEWATER, Mass., and CHARLOTTE, N.C., Dec. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Boston Biomedica, Inc. (Nasdaq: BBII) and the Consortium for Plasma Science, LLC announced today an agreement has been reached to jointly collaborate on the development and commercialization of BBI's proprietary Pressure Cycling Technology (PCT) for the inactivation of pathogens and other infectious agents in human source plasma, the starting material used in the manufacture of clinically useful plasma-based therapeutics.
Under the Agreement, the Consortium for Plasma Science will provide initial funding to cover Boston Biomedica's research efforts, with subsequent funding contemplated during the first half of 2000, and annually thereafter, based on the achievement of mutually agreed upon milestones. The Agreement provides for Boston Biomedica to pay the Consortium a royalty on future product sales.
"Throughout the developed world, blood safety is state-of-the-art and certainly the risk for infection by transmission during transfusion has never been lower," said Dr. Frederick A. Dombrose, Executive Director of the Consortium. "Currently, the safety of transfused human blood-derived products depends heavily on the dual safeguards of donor screening and pathogen testing, in combination with the plasma fractionation industry's commitment to quality assurance. Nonetheless, vigilance and continued improvement remain a goal because of the public concern for the possible transmission of undetectable or unknown pathogens," Dombrose added. "We are intrigued with the data that BBI has generated using PCT thus far, and are committed to continue to fund development of this technology through commercialization if they meet our agreed upon milestones."
"Pressure Cycling Technology is unique, in that it employs the rapid cycling of ultra high pressure. This proprietary technology of BBI has successfully been demonstrated to inactivate blood-borne pathogens," said Richard T. Schumacher, Founder and CEO of Boston Biomedica. "The use of cycling pressure can also minimize potentially negative consequences to the biological activity of treated plasma proteins, which are of critical importance in the manufacture of therapeutic derivatives by the plasma fractionation industry," Schumacher added. "Our R&D efforts in Pressure Cycling Technology will be accelerated with the support provided by the Consortium. We are especially pleased to partner with a company representing a large segment of the plasma fractionation industry and to have access to the experience and expertise of the Consortium's world-class Scientific Advisory Board."
PCT was acquired from BioSeq, Inc. by Boston Biomedica, Inc. in 1998, to exploit its promise for the acceleration and control of bioprocesses, such as the inactivation of pathogens in plasma. Other applications of this technology, such as sample preparation for nucleic acid testing and pre-treating clinical samples prior to testing to protect lab workers, are also being actively investigated by BBI.
The Consortium for Plasma Science seeks to provide R&D funding worldwide for a universal approach to eradicate pathogens from human plasma without destroying the functionality of the plasma proteins. The Consortium is co-funded by four plasma fractionation companies, which share safety as a common goal: Alpha Therapeutic Corporation, a subsidiary of the Japanese pan-national Yoshitomi; Bayer Corporation; Baxter Healthcare Corporation; and Aventis Behring, a unit of Aventis, S.A. (the name of the recently merged Hoechst and Rhone-Poulenc). The Consortium, which is a separate entity from its member companies, hopes to accelerate the emergence of new technologies.
Boston Biomedica, Inc. is an infectious diseases management company providing products and services for the detection and treatment of infectious diseases (ID) such as AIDS, Lyme Disease, and Viral Hepatitis. The Company has four business units: (1) BBI Diagnostics, an ISO 9001 certified manufacturer and seller of quality control and other diagnostic products used to increase the accuracy of in-vitro diagnostic tests, (2) BBI Clinical Laboratories, a leading specialty infectious diseases testing laboratory, (3) BBI Biotech Research Laboratories, providing R&D support for the other BBI business units as well as contract research services for third parties, and (4) BBI Source Scientific, an ISO 9001 certified manufacturer of laboratory and diagnostic instrumentation. In addition, the Company is pursuing research and development programs in the areas of Pressure Cycling Technology (PCT) and drug discovery (Panacos Pharmaceuticals), with the goal of introducing new solutions for the detection and treatment of infectious diseases.
Statements contained in this news release that state the Company's or
management's intentions, hopes, beliefs, expectations or predictions of the
future are "forward-looking" statements. It is important to note that the
Company's actual results could differ materially from those projected in such
forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ
from those projected include the possibility that BBI may not be successful in
getting PCT to market or that the Consortium may not give Boston Biomedica any
further funding. Additional information concerning factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking
statements is contained from time to time in the Company's SEC filings,
including but not limited to the Company's report on Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 1998 and on Form 10-Q for the periods ended March 31, June
30, and September 30, 1999. Copies of these documents may be obtained by
contacting the Company or the SEC.
SOURCE Boston Biomedica, Inc.
Web site: http: //www.plasmaconsortium.com http://www.bbii.com
CONTACT: Richard T. Schumacher, CEO and Chairman, or William R. Prather, M.D., Sr. VP Finance & Business Dev., both of Boston Biomedica, 508-580-1900; or Frederick A. Dombrose, Ph.D., Executive Director of Consortium for Plasma Science, 704-571-4070
