Cell Robotics Ships Prototypes of Personal Lasette to Chronimed; Chronimed
to make additional $150,000 equity investment in Cell Robotics
PR Newswire - March 11, 1999 08:15
CRII CHMD %MTC %PDT %OTC V%PRN P%PRN
ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, March 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Cell Robotics
International, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: CRII), the developer of the
Lasette™, a laser finger perforator to draw blood for glucose testing
in a nearly painless manner, announced today that it has shipped
prototypes of its new Personal Lasette to its marketing and sales
partner, Chronimed, Inc. (Nasdaq: CHMD). The new Personal Lasette is
about the size of a cell phone and weighs approximately 8 ounces as
compared to the 29 ounces of the current Professional Lasette
version. The Personal Lasette features a disposable lens cartridge that
automatically advances the lens shield after each use. Upon delivery
of the prototypes, Chronimed will make an additional $150,000 equity
investment in Cell Robotics International. This represents the second of
three equity investments that Chronimed will make in Cell Robotics as
part of the exclusive distribution agreement entered into by the
companies in August 1998. !
!
Including this investment, Chronimed will have invested $450,000 in Cell
Robotics since the execution of the agreement. An additional equity
investment of $150,000 will be made based upon Cell Robotics meeting
certain future conditions.
The Professional and subsequently, the Personal Lasette are the first
laser-based medical devices ever cleared by the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) for home use. The product is available by
prescription only and with operational instruction from a healthcare
provider. In the U.S. there are 10.3 million people who have been
diagnosed with diabetes. Approximately 4.7 million diabetics are insulin
dependent and must test their glucose levels multiple times daily. In
addition to glucose testing, the Lasette has FDA clearances which include
performing tests for cholesterol, electrolytes, lipids, CBC (blood cell
counting, including hematocrit and hemoglobin) and prothrombin (PT or
bloodclotting). In the U.S. there are approximately 7,500 hospitals and
46,000 other clinical sites performing blood-screening tests on a daily basis.
Production of the Personal Lasette is slated to commence in mid-summer of
1999. Assembly and quality control for the product will take place at
Cell Robotics' manufacturing facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico. For
more information or to purchase a Lasette contact Chronimed at
800-866-1633 or via e-mail at Lasette@chronimed.com.
Ronald K. Lohrding, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Cell
Robotics commented, “We are pleased to have completed this critical
development stage of our Personal Lasette on-time and on-budget. We look
forward to working with Chronimed to complete development of the
product. We believe there are significant opportunities to improve the
health maintenance routines of people around the world. We are focused on
becoming a market leader in supplying products to this critical healthcare
market.”
In addition to the Lasette, Cell Robotics International, Inc.
manufactures, markets, and distributes scientific and medical laser
devices. These devices include the In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF)
Workstation, designed to improve IVF pregnancy rates, and the Cell
Robotics Workstation, a research instrument that incorporates the
LaserTweezers® and LaserScissors™ for manipulating and cutting cells
and chromosomes. Additional information is available on the Cell Robotics
Web Site at cellrobotics.com, by e-mail at
crii@cellrobotics.com, or by telephone at (505) 343-1131.
As a cautionary note to investors, certain matters discussed in this
press release may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such matters involve
risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ
materially, including the following: changes in economic conditions;
general competitive factors; the Company's ability to execute its service
and product sales plans; and the risks described from time to time in the
Company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings.
SOURCE Cell Robotics International, Inc.
/CONTACT: Craig Rogers, Vice President - Investor Relations of Cell
Robotics, Inc., 719-590-1793; or Retail: Jim Estrada, Brett Maas, or Amanda
Coronado, or Analysts/Institutional: Joe Dorame, or Media: Jeff Stanlis, all
of RCG Capital Markets Group, Inc., 602-675-0400/
/Company News On-Call: prnewswire.com or fax,
800-758-5804, ext. 133088/
/Web site: rcgonline.com
/Web site: cellrobotics.com
(CRII CHMD) |
