SOUTH EASTON, Mass., Dec. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pressure BioSciences, Inc. (“PBI” or the “Company”) today announced that they have entered into an exclusive patent license agreement with the Battelle Memorial Institute (“Battelle”). The licensed technology is described in the patent application filed by Battelle on July 31, 2008 (US serial number 12/183,219). This application includes subject matter related to a method and a system for improving the analysis of protein samples, including through an automated, in-line system utilizing pressure and a pre-selected agent to obtain a digested sample in a significantly shorter period of time than current methods, while maintaining the integrity of the sample throughout the preparatory process.
The Company believes that the claims in the pending Battelle patent will build upon and broaden its own existing IP position in using pressure cycling technology (“PCT”) to further enhance the quality and significantly decrease the processing time for protein analysis. This is an area of particular importance for many laboratories worldwide, and is one of PBI’s strategic areas of focus. The novel aspect of the Battelle invention, when combined with the advantages of PCT, offers the possibility of a straightforward approach to the automation of sample preparation techniques. The Company believes that this combination may lead to the potential development of instrumentation to be directly integrated with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and mass spectrometry equipment for the complete processing of proteins, from sample preparation to final result - a truly novel approach to protein analysis.
Dr. Nathan Lawrence, V.P. of Marketing for PBI remarked: “We are very pleased to see that customers of PBI’s PCT Sample Preparation System are making discoveries and developing important new applications using our PCT technology and equipment. PCT is gaining acceptance worldwide in many areas of research. We have long anticipated that independent researchers would extend “the Power of PCT” on their own. Although PBI may not always choose to license all discoveries made with PCT by others, the Company will continually assess the value of the discovery to broaden our already extensive patent position. We firmly believe that licensing this particular patent will help us more rapidly reach our goal of making PCT a standard method for accelerating enzymatic reactions in many different fields of the life sciences.”
Dr. Alex Lazarev, Vice President of Research and Development for PBI, said: “This invention combines pressure-accelerated protein digestion with HPLC separation. New instruments based on the combination of this invention and PCT could become a front-end to modern LC-MS instrumentation. These could eliminate major bottlenecks in biological sample preparation for protein analysis, since they could obviate the need for the operator to manually load and unload samples during processing. Such instruments could seamlessly integrate sample preparation with modern HPLC equipment, which could in turn offer the significant advantages of increasing the quality of results and decreasing the time to discovery. For drug discovery and development companies, this could result in a significant reduction in both the cost and time required to get new products to market.”
About Battelle Memorial Institute
Battelle Memorial Institute is an international science and technology enterprise that explores emerging areas of science, develops and commercializes technology, and manages laboratories for customers.
Battelle leads the management teams of four national laboratories for the U.S. Department of Energy and participates in the management of two others. Battelle serves more than 800 federal, state, and local government agencies, some of the largest corporations in the world, and private sector customers and partners through offices in more than 100 national and international locations. Battelle oversees 20,000 staff members and conducts $3.9 billion in annual research and development, including the national labs managed or co-managed for the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
About Pressure BioSciences, Inc.
Pressure BioSciences, Inc. (PBI) is a publicly traded company focused on the development of a novel, enabling 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 U.S. and 6 foreign patents covering multiple applications of PCT in the life sciences field, including such areas as genomic and proteomic sample preparation, pathogen inactivation, the control of chemical (particularly enzymatic) reactions, immunodiagnostics, and protein purification.
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. Such forward looking statements include statements regarding the patentability of the Battelle invention; the ability of the Battelle invention and PCT to significantly shorten processing time, increase the quality of results in protein analysis, and offer a straightforward approach to automation of proteomic experimentation; expected advantages of PCT in enhancing proteolytic activity; the likelihood that such instruments will seamlessly integrate sample preparation with HPLC, and reduce the time and cost to get new products to market; that PCT is gaining worldwide acceptance; that customers are making discoveries with PCT; that licensing new discoveries, including the Battelle invention, might broaden PBI’s IP portfolio; and that the license from Battelle will help make PCT a standard method for accelerating enzymatic reactions in the life sciences. 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: unforeseen technological difficulties that the Company may encounter in the development of the PCT technology, products using the PCT technology, and, in integrating the Battelle invention with PCT to automate sample preparation; due to such unforeseen technical difficulties, a new, automated instrument that combines PCT and the Battelle invention may not be adopted by the scientific community as an accepted method of automated sample preparation; that the claims in the Battelle patent filing may not be issued; due to the Company’s limited financial resources, if the Company is unable to secure financing, it will be forced to substantially curtail its planned operations which will limit the Company’s ability to achieve market acceptance and penetration and its ability to become profitable; and the other risks and uncertainties discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007 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.
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http://www.pressurebiosciences.com
CONTACT: Richard T. Schumacher, President and CEO, +1-508-230-1828 (T),
Wayne Fritzsche, Chairman of the Board, +1-508-230-1829 (F), both of
Pressure BioSciences, Inc.
Web site: http://www.pressurebiosciences.com/
