YONKERS, N.Y., April 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Advanced Viral Research
Corp. (OTC Bulletin Board: ADVR) today announced that two issued U.S. Patents
pertaining to Reticulose (R) technology were assigned to Advanced Viral
Research Corp. with all rights of ownership, title, and interests as part of
the settlement of the litigation originally instituted by the Company against
Immune Modulation Maximum Corporation (IMMC), the previous assignee of these
two patents, and its related companies.
Under the terms of the Settlement Agreement entered as part of the final
judgment of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan on
March 25, 2002, ADVR was assigned full rights of ownership, title and interest
in U.S. issued Letters of Patent, numbers 5,849,196, entitled "Composition
Containing Peptides and Nucleic Acids and Methods of Making Same" issued
December 15, 1998 and 6,312,602, entitled "Peptide-Containing Compositions and
Methods of Making and Using Same" issued November 6, 2001.
The Settlement Agreement also provided among other things that: 1) IMMC
acknowledges that the Company is the sole and rightful owner of all rights,
title and interests for the United States and throughout the world in and to
the Reticulose (R) technology; 2) IMMC sold, assigned and transferred, jointly
and severally, to ADVR, its successors and assigns, all their claims, rights,
title and interests for the United States and throughout the world in and to
Reticulose (R), the Reticulose (R) trademark, the Reticulose (R) technology,
any modifications, improvements, and derivations thereto, and all related
patents, inventions, discoveries, currently pending patent applications and
any patents, discoveries and inventions resulting therefrom or described
therein.
The Company did grant IMMC, a non-exclusive, non-transferable, royalty-
free license to make, use and sell products coming within the scope of the
patents transferred by IMMC to ADVR, but only to the extent such products are
in the form of oral dietary supplements, which were already being sold on
IMMC's then current website.
"We believe that this Settlement Agreement of the litigation
satisfactorily protects the property of the shareholders of Advanced Viral
Research Corp., and establishes and confirms the Company's full ownership of
the technology represented by Reticulose (R). With the satisfactory
settlement of this litigation, management can turn its full attention to the
development of our exciting novel immumodulator, Product R," stated Shalom Z.
Hirschman, M.D., CEO & President of Advanced Viral Research Corp. "The
Settlement Agreement with IMMC also adds two U.S. issued Letters of Patent to
the growing portfolio of issued U.S. Letters of Patent owned by Advanced Viral
Research Corp."
Advanced Viral Research Corp. recently announced on April 12, 2002, that
it began Phase 2 of its Investigational New Drug (IND) application to the U.S.
FDA for the clinical study of the topical treatment with Product R of genital
warts caused by infection with strains of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). The
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cite genital infection with
HPV as a growing public health problem.
Product R is being investigated as a non-toxic peptide-nucleic acid-type
immunomodulator that appears to stimulate the proinflammatory responses
required to combat viral infections such as AIDS and human papilloma virus and
to dampen aberrant autoimmune-type inflammatory responses, such as occur in
patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Therefore, Product R has been termed a
"switch type" immunomodulator. Product R is also being studied for the
promise shown in its ability to mitigate the toxic side effects of other
drugs, including those used to treat HIV infection and chemotherapeutic drugs
employed in the treatment of cancers.
Advanced Viral Research Corp., based in Yonkers, New York, is a
biopharmaceutical firm dedicated to improving patients' lives by researching,
developing and bringing to market new and effective therapies for viral and
other diseases.
For further information regarding Advanced Viral Research Corp., please
visit our website at http://www.adviral.com.
Note: This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve
risks associated with clinical development, regulatory approvals, including
application to the FDA, product commercialization and other risks described
from time to time in the SEC reports filed by the Company. Product R is not
approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or any comparable agencies
of any other countries. There is no assurance that the Company will be able
to secure the financing necessary to continue and/or complete the clinical
trials of Product R or satisfy certain other conditions relating to clinical
trials including obtaining adequate insurance on terms acceptable to the
Company. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise the
information contained in this announcement whether as a result of new
information, future events or circumstances or otherwise.
Contact Information:
Mayr Communications, Inc.
877-777-6010
mayrcomm@att.net
SOURCE Advanced Viral Research Corp.
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Related links:
http://www.adviral.com
CONTACT:
Mayr Communications, Inc., +1-877-777-6010,
or mayrcomm@att.net, for Advanced Viral Research Corp.
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