Opens State-of-the-Art Pathogen Inactivation R&D Facility
MELVILLE, N.Y., March 27 /PRNewswire/ -- V. I. Technologies, Inc.
(Nasdaq: VITX) today announced the relocation of its corporate headquarters
from Melville, N.Y. to Watertown, Mass., outside Boston. The Company's new
headquarters will be integrated into VITEX's new state-of-the-art research and
development facility that opened during the past week. This 35,000 square
foot facility is believed to be the largest laboratory and research facility
in the world dedicated to the study of pathogen inactivation of blood
products.
The new facility demonstrates the continued transformation of VITEX to a
research-driven biopharmaceutical company from its origins in biologics
manufacturing. This process was accelerated in the fourth quarter of last
year with the Company's merger with Cambridge-based Pentose Pharmaceuticals.
The Pentose INACTINE(TM) technology has become the cornerstone of the VITEX
red cell viral inactivation program, which is currently in Phase I clinical
trials.
John Barr, President and CEO of VITEX commented, "The opening of our new
facility represents another important milestone for the Company and the final
step in the integration of Pentose and VITEX. Being located in Boston, a
global center of biotechnology, puts us in close proximity to world class
universities, hospitals and medical centers. The location, combined with the
quality of our labs will offer rich opportunities for technical and scientific
staff recruiting. It will also enable us to more easily enter into
collaborations with other biotech organizations to further expand our strong
portfolio of technologies."
Mr. Barr added, "Our Melville biologics manufacturing facility will remain
a critical competitive advantage for the Company. We are fortunate to have an
unmatched pool of skilled commercial talent in what is a challenging and
highly regulated business. We plan to continue to invest in our New York
organization to upgrade our capabilities and to support our growing
fractionation and PLAS+(R)SD operations, which in turn fund our R&D programs."
VITEX is a leading developer and manufacturer of a broad portfolio of
blood products that utilize its patented viral inactivation technologies
designed to ensure product safety. The technologies are tailored for all
blood component applications and other blood-derived products, including
plasma, plasma derivatives, red blood cells and platelets. The first of
VITEX's virally inactivated products, PLAS+(R)SD, is the only FDA-approved
method for viral inactivation of plasma.
For further information, please visit the VITEX web site at
http://www.vitechnologies.com .
Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters
discussed are forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor
provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
statements involve risks and uncertainties, such as quarterly fluctuations in
operating results, the timely availability of new products, market acceptance
of the company's products, the impacts of competitive products and pricing,
government regulation of the company's products and other risks and
uncertainties set forth in the company's filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. These risks and uncertainties could cause actual results
to differ materially from any forward-looking statements made herein.
To receive additional information on V. I. Technologies, Inc., via fax, at
no charge, dial 1-800-PRO-INFO and enter code VITX.
SOURCE V.I. Technologies, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.vitechnologies.com
CONTACT:
John Barr, President and CEO of V.I.
Technologies, Inc., 516-752-7314, ext. 6110; or Alison Ziegler,
Brian Gill, and Deanne Eagle of The Financial Relations Board,
212-661-8030
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