Hepatix and Vitagen are the other two companies, but, I don't think they are public. Here's a letter from Exti President. Pay attention to the 3rd paragraph from the bottom.
President's Letter from Annual Report:
Dear Fellow Shareholder:
Over the past year, Exten Industries, Inc. has done a major job of cleaning up the financial and legal problems inherited from it's prior management. In fact, most legal issues have now been put behind us and the net loss for fiscal year 1997 is about one tenth what it was the preceding year.
Exten Industries formed a new subsidiary, Xenogenics Corporation, to further develop its SybiolR artificial liver technology.
James Considine, MD, MBA was elected president. The company and subsidiary are now better positioned to move forward with the bio-liver device development and clinical trials.
Other highlights of the year include the expansion of the Scientific Advisory Board under the direction of John Brems, MD, FACS, formerly at Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation in La Jolla, CA, and now at Loyola University in Chicago, IL. New members added in 1997 include: David Van Thiel, Director of Liver Transplantation at Loyola University; Donald Cramer, DVM, Ph.D., Director of Transplantation Biology Research at St. Vincent's Medical Center in Los Angeles; Michael Ishitani, MD, FACS of University Hospitals of Cleveland; and Daniel Salomon, MD, Director of Transplantation Research at the Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation.
Initial funding has been received and clinical research activities will commence shortly. Pre-clinical as well as FDA clinical research will be conducted at Loyola University Medical Center in Chicago starting in early 1998. Patent applications have been filed under the Patent Cooperative Treaty ("PCT") in 15 countries.
There is, as yet, no artificial liver device on the market. Due to the prevalence and awareness of liver disease and the scarcity of donor organs, the company believes that there is a great worldwide need for an "artificial liver". We also believe that our proposed methodology will offer cost and treatment advantages over proposed competitive devices.
Strategic partnerships are being investigated and the Company is seeking an aquisition, merger, or strategic alliance with a profitable company. In summary, the Company is now positioned as a biomedical research organization with excellent technology. Our primary objective is to bring this technology to commercial viability as rapidly as possible.
Thank you all for your patience and support over the past year. Your management team is dedicated to insuring that your continued support will be rewarded in the years ahead.
Sincerely,
W. Gerald Newmin,
Chairman, CEO and President |
