Oncolytics Biotech Inc. Completes $3.4 Million Initial Public Offering
CALGARY, ALBERTA--Oncolytics Biotech Inc. ("Oncolytics") (ASE:
ONC) announced today that the Corporation has closed a previously
announced initial public offering of common shares. This offering
raised gross proceeds of $3,400,000 through the issuance of
4,000,000 common shares at a price of $.85 per share. Oncolytics
also issued 2,899,997 common shares and 1,500,000 common share
purchase warrants upon the deemed exercise of previously issued
special warrants.
Canaccord Capital Corporation acted as agent for the offering
which was filed with the securities commissions in Alberta,
Ontario and British Columbia.
Net proceeds of the offering will be used primarily for research
and development, manufacturing and process development, a Phase I
clinical trial examining the use of REOLYSIN in cancer patients,
and certain milestone payments.
The common shares of Oncolytics will commence trading today on The
Alberta Stock Exchange under the trading symbol "ONC".
Oncolytics is a Calgary-based biotechnology company whose focus is
the development of the reovirus known as REOLYSIN as a potential
cancer therapeutic. The human reovirus infects and kills cancer
cells with an activated Ras pathway. Ras is an important
component of a pathway controlling normal growth and
differentiation of a cell and when activated, may account for a
large proportion of all human tumors. Researchers believe that
targeting this pathway could have broad potential in the treatment
of many cancers. Oncolytics researchers demonstrated that
reovirus was selectively able to kill cancer cells with this
particular activation and successfully demonstrated that the virus
could kill human cancer cells in vitro derived from breast,
prostate, pancreatic and brain tumors, as well as being able to
treat tumors successfully in a number of animal models.
Oncolytics is anticipating the commencement of a Phase I clinical
trial on reovirus in the first part of 2000.
This release contains certain forward-looking statements which
involve known and unknown risks, delays, uncertainties and other
factors not under the Company's control which may cause actual
results, performance or achievements of the Company to be
materially different from the results, performance or expectations
implied by these forward-looking statements.
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Oncolytics Biotech Inc.
Dr. Brad Thompson
President & CEO
(403) 283-0705
(403) 283-0858 (FAX)
or
Canaccord Capital Corporation
Mr. Rod Matheson
(403) 508-3822
(403) 508-3828 (FAX) |
