PORTLAND, OR--(Marketwire - April 16, 2008) - AVI BioPharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVII) today announced the appointment of Ryszard 'Richard' Kole, Ph.D. as Senior Vice President of Discovery Research. Dr. Kole has a long and successful track record of research and discovery in directed alternative splicing and, as company founder, was the major driving force behind the value created by Ercole Biotech, Inc. AVI's acquisition of Ercole closed on March 20, 2008.
