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Biotech / Medical : Biotransplant(BTRN) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: tom pope who wrote (661)	8/28/2000 7:54:16 AM
From: scaram(o)uche	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1475

Monday August 28, 7:30 am Eastern Time Press Release SOURCE: BioTransplant Incorporated BioTransplant Breeds Miniature Swine That Do Not Produce Porcine Endogenous Retrovirus (PERV) Capable of Replicating in Human Cells Presented Today at the XVIII Meeting of the International Congress of the Transplantation Society in Rome, Italy CHARLESTOWN, Mass., Aug. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- BioTransplant Incorporated today (Nasdaq: BTRN - news) presented data indicating that the company may be able to develop a breed of pig that does not produce porcine endogenous retrovirus (PERV) capable of productively infecting human cells. BioTransplant believes that the availability of cells, tissues, and organs from these pigs will improve the safety of xenotransplantation. This research was presented by Dr. Clive Patience, Principal Scientist at BioTransplant and Chair of the session ``Xenotransplantation: Potential For Infection''. The study involved nine animals of a defined genetic line present in the highly inbred BioTransplant miniature swine. All nine animals failed to transmit virus that replicated in human kidney cell line 293, the most permissive human cell line for PERV replication. As controls, cells from all nine animals demonstrated virus transmission to porcine cells. Furthermore, cells from other pig lines transmitted virus to both human and porcine cells. The results of this study suggest that the non-transmitter animals do not contain copies of replication-competent PERV. Elliot Lebowitz, Ph.D., BioTransplant's President and CEO, said, ``Although the potential benefits of xenotransplantation are widely recognized, lately there have been heightened concerns about safety.'' He further added, ``These results are very encouraging and help address the considerable concerns that have been raised.'' BioTransplant aims to establish the cross-species pig to human transplantation technology to increase the availability of suitable organs. The company has been breeding miniature swine, which have a more appropriate size to serve as human organ donors and have been housed under defined conditions with a strict medical and quality control history. BioTransplant's strain of miniature pigs which lack porcine endogenous retrovirus capable of infecting human cells may provide transplantation with a much safer source of organs, cells or tissues. BioTransplant has been awarded an SBIR Phase I grant for further study of the genetic basis of the absence of human-tropic PERV. The grant will support research to facilitate the breeding of safer strains of swine and increase the choice of pigs that may be used for xenotransplantation. BioTransplant, Incorporated utilizes its proprietary technologies to re-educate the body's immune responses to allow tolerance of foreign cells, tissues and organs. Based on this technology, the Company is developing a portfolio of products for application in a range of medical conditions, including organ and tissue transplantation, and treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases, for which current therapies are inadequate. BioTransplant's products under development are intended to induce long-term functional transplantation tolerance in humans, increase the therapeutic benefit of bone marrow transplants, and reduce or eliminate the need for lifelong immunosuppressive therapy. This press release and further information about BioTransplant can be found on the World Wide Web at biotransplant.com. This announcement contains, in addition to historical information, forward-looking statements about BioTransplant that involve risks and uncertainties, including statements about the Company's ability to successfully develop miniature swine that lack PERV capable of replicating in human cells and the Company's belief that such miniature swine will increase the safety of xenotransplantation. Such statements reflect management's current views and are based on assumptions. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated as a result of a number of factors. Factors that could cause future results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: BioTransplant's ability to secure the substantial additional funding required for its operations and research and development programs; BioTransplant's ability to successfully discover, develop and commercialize its products, obtain required regulatory approvals in a timely fashion, and overcome other difficulties inherent in developing pharmaceuticals and procedures for organ transplantation; BioTransplant's ability to obtain and enforce the patent protection required for its products; uncertainties to the extent of future government regulation of the transplantation business; and BioTransplant's ability to maintain collaborations with third parties. For a detailed discussion of these and other factors, see the section titled ``Business Factors Which May Affect Results'' in BioTransplant's current annual report on Form 10-K, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Editor's Note: This release is also available on the Internet at noonanrusso.com SOURCE: BioTransplant Incorporated