Thursday March 2, 9:10 am Eastern Time
Company Press Release
SOURCE: DGI BioTechnologies, LLC.
DGI BioTechnologies Announces Issuance of U.S.
Patent for Diogenesis(R) Drug-Discovery Platform
EDISON, N.J., March 2 /PRNewswire/ -- DGI BioTechnologies, LLC. (DGI), today announced the issuance of U.S. Patent
No. 6,010,861, entitled ``Target-Specific Screens and Their Use for Discovering Small Organic Molecular Pharmacophores'
(the ``Diogenesis' patent).
The novel Diogenesis drug-discovery platform rapidly and inexpensively creates unique site directed assays (SDAs) that can
identify small molecules as drug-lead-discovery candidates. Other advantages include:
-- A singular automated in-vitro assay system, universally applicable to
any pharmaceutical target.
-- Utility when little or no information exists about a target's natural
signal.
-- Generation of three-dimensional models of potentially active
drug leads.
-- Compatibility with the most sensitive screening technologies.
-- Extremely large and diverse Surrogate libraries of peptides
and antibodies.
-- Simple, fast, high throughput, and adaptable to automation.
-- Facilitates drug-target validation and selection for the huge number of
new human genes coming online.
Collectively, the benefits of this new approach reduce the time and risk involved in small-molecule drug discovery, establish a
capability for computer-based drug model screening as well as rational drug design and, at the end, offer orally active
compounds to replace injectable versions of drugs.
DGI expects the Diogenesis process to result in the identification of novel therapeutic agents for a wide range of diseases, and
intends to license these candidates to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies either before or after preclinical
development.
Dr. Arthur J. Blume, President and Chief Executive Officer of DGI, commented, ``As I have mentioned in previous
announcements, we realize how critically important the development of our intellectual property is to our future. We are very
excited to be awarded the Diogenesis© patent, which is the first ever issued regarding the use of surrogates to find small
molecules. Equally exciting is that the same process facilitates the validation and selection of new drug targets from among the
150,000 new genes being presented to the pharmaceutical industry via the Human Genome Project. We are acutely aware of
the importance that genomics will play in future drug discoveries and look forward to playing a significant role with our
technology.'
He explained, ``DGI's Surrogates modify the activity of proteins -- the product of genes -- by turning them on or off, thereby
enabling us to observe the outcome of activity regulation, in cell or animal models. In this way, we are able not only to identify
which gene products are related to a particular disease or condition, but also determine which of a number of disease-related
genes is the ideal candidate through which to produce the pharmaceutically desired effect.'
Dr. Neil Goldstein, DGI's director of Molecular Biology, said, ``We have successfully used the Diogenesis process to develop
Surrogates and SDAs for several important protein targets. In addition, small molecule hits have already been identified using
this approach. The protection offered by issuance of the patent will allow DGI to expand into other research areas including
'proteomics,' the newest aid to genomics.'
Dr. Blume concluded, ``It is gratifying to see DGI beginning to take its rightful place in the world of biotechnology. In addition
to further substantiating Diogenesis, which is the centerpiece of our intellectual property, the awarding of this patent is a major
step in solidifying our reputation in the biotech community.'
Companies interested in licensing or co-developing this technology should contact DGI directly via e-mail at
ablume@dgibt.com. For more information, please visit DGI's website at dgibt.com.
DGI BioTechnologies, LLC., has developed a proprietary process that offers pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies an
improved method of identifying novel, small molecule, orally available drug leads. DGI BioTechnologies is majority owned by
New Brunswick Scientific Co., Inc. (Nasdaq: NBSC - news).
This press release includes statements that may constitute forward-looking statements made pursuant to the Safe Harbor
provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This information may involve risks and uncertainties, including
without limitation, risks relating to the development by DGI of its technology that could cause actual results to differ materially
from the forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking
statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those projected.
SOURCE: DGI BioTechnologies, LLC. |
