Neugenesis in the News

Monday October 25, 2004

Press Release

Neugenesis Unveils New Technology for Rapid Production of Influenza Vaccines

Source: Neugenesis Corporation

Mountain View, California October 25. - Neugenesis Corporation today announced the discovery of a method for producing vaccines for influenza and other diseases which radically improves upon current processes. The Neugenesis technology dramatically shortens production time for vaccines, improves sterility in the growth environment, is significantly less expensive and eliminates egg-based allergic reactions. Using the rapid Neugenesis method, vaccine production can occur in as little as 6 weeks in a sterile lab environment, eliminating the traditional reliance upon animal products. The rapid development capability of the Neugenesis technology gives vaccine producers greater flexibility in developing vaccines like the influenza vaccine, where the disease strain may change rapidly. It further minimizes the risk of contamination and offers a new option for those with egg allergies.

“This technology will dramatically reduce the cost and risk associated with vaccine production, and ensure faster time to market with more effective products,” said W. Dorsey Stuart, CEO and Co-Founder, Neugenesis, Inc.  “When this method is commercialized, it will save lives by making it faster and cheaper to vaccinate entire populations against diseases  such as influenza that continue to kill people in both the developed and third world nations.”

Neugenesis’ unique technology is covered in patent application entitled “Methods and Compositions for combinatorial-based production of multivalent recombinant antigens” and in addition to influenza also applies to vaccines against other diseases caused by bacteria, fungi and viruses.

“This year’s influenza vaccine shortage demonstrates the critical need for innovation in the area of vaccine production. Using Neugenesis’ technology, the shortage could have been avoided, and vaccines would have been available to everyone this flu season,” commented Ronald E. Cape, Ph. D., Chairman of the Board of Neugenesis and former Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO of Cetus Corporation.

Neugenesis has also announced it will be actively seeking partners in the biopharmaceutical industry to rapidly move the technology into the marketplace.

Neugenesis Corporation is a privately held biotechnology company which has been able to generate a diverse set of technology platforms for the world wide biotechnology and biopharmaceutical industry. In addition to its new position in vaccines, the Company holds strong intellectual property positions in the areas of production of recombinant monoclonal antibodies, cell based gene directed evolution and cell based combinatorial biology.

For further information, please visit the Neugenesis web site at www.neugenesis.com or contact Dr. W. Dorsey Stuart at (415) -515-0817..