PLANTATION, Fla., May 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Viragen, Inc. and Viragen International, Inc. (BULLETIN BOARD: VGNI) today announced that the Companies have entered into an exclusive distribution agreement with CJ Pharma, U.S. Pharmaceutical Division of CJ Corporation, and the CJ Hong Kong Ltd. subsidiary, as exclusive distributors of natural interferon in Hong Kong. Viragen''s human leukocyte-derived alpha interferon is currently approved in Hong Kong as a second-line therapy for the treatment of patients with Hairy Cell Leukemia (HCL) or Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML) who did not respond to recombinant (synthetic) interferon regimens.
CJ Corporation (formerly Cheil Jedang) was established as the first manufacturing operation unit of the Samsung Group in 1953. Now a split-off of Samsung Group, the CJ Group recorded over $6 billion in revenues last year, conducting business with over 60 different countries through its thirty-two offices around the world.
"We are very pleased to build upon our relationship with a proven leader such as CJ Pharma," stated Viragen''s Executive Vice President, Mel Rothberg. "We have been working very closely with CJ to commercialize our natural interferon in previously assigned territories in Latin America. Now we are expanding our work together to include the introduction of the drug into the Hong Kong market."
CJ Pharma exclusively represents Viragen''s products in the following territories: Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Peru, Costa Rica, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Panama and Hong Kong. CJ Pharma is responsible for all costs associated with the regulatory approval process, including clinical trials if required, in each of the respective countries.
CJ Hong Kong''s General Manager, Mr. Jong Hwan Park, stated, "We are excited to attain the rights to distribute such a potent anti-viral product with Viragen''s multi-subtype human interferon. Our immediate priority is to expand the indications for which the product is currently approved to include a broad range of viral and malignant diseases and we are proceeding with the regulatory registration process."
Dr. Andrew Gorman, Vice President, CJ Pharma (Princeton, NJ), stated, "We believe that natural interferon represents a very attractive international market opportunity for us and our commitment to Viragen now extends from South America to Asia. Our foremost priority is to offer products that promote better health for everyone and this immune-enhancing drug offers that kind of promise in treating a variety of diseases."
Backgrounder:
The majority of alpha interferons that are marketed are single-subtype recombinant interferons. Therapy resistance is not unusual with recombinant interferons with a significant percentage of patients failing to respond to standard therapy. In some instances, recombinant interferon is rejected by the patient''s immune system, usually caused by the formation of neutralizing antibodies which may lead to a loss of clinical efficacy. Also, many patients cannot tolerate the adverse side-effects sometimes associated with recombinant therapy. High doses of recombinant interferon may cause serious, even life- threatening side effects.
The Natural Choice
Viragen believes that in many cases, especially when higher dosages are required, its natural interferon appears to offer substantial advantages to recombinant interferon regimens:
* Natural interferon is very similar to interferon secreted by the human immune system during a normal virus infection, significantly lowering the risk of the drug being rejected.
* Natural interferon contains the multiple subtype composition that is characteristic of interferon produced by the human body. It is believed that this may result in a broader spectrum of anti-viral activity with each subtype perhaps showing a specific biological activity.
* Natural interferon does not appear to cause the formation of neutralizing antibodies.
* Natural interferon is significantly less immunogenic than recombinant interferon. It should be far better tolerated by patients with fewer side effects and thus allow for higher doses to be administered to maximize the benefits of the therapy.
About CJ Corporation:
CJ Corporation (formerly Cheil Jedang) was established as the first manufacturing operation unit of the Samsung Group in 1953. The CJ Group recorded over $6 billion in revenues last year, conducting business with over 60 different countries through its thirty-two offices around the world. CJ Pharma is the pharmaceutical division in the U.S. and is the exclusive distributor of Viragen''s natural interferon in South America and Hong Kong.
About Viragen, Inc.
Viragen is a biotechnology company specializing in the research, development and commercialization of natural and recombinant protein-based drugs designed to treat a broad range of viral and malignant diseases. These protein-based drugs include human natural alpha interferon, monoclonal antibodies, peptide drugs and therapeutic vaccines. Viragen''s strategy also includes the development of Avian Transgenic Technology for the large-scale, cost-effective manufacturing of its portfolio of protein-based drugs, as well as offering Contract Manufacturing for the entire biopharmaceutical industry.
Viragen is publicly traded on the American Stock Exchange (VRA). Viragen''s majority owned subsidiary, Viragen International, Inc., is publicly traded on the Over-The-Counter Bulletin Board (VGNI). Viragen''s key partners and licensors include: Roslin Institute, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, National Institutes of Health, Cancer Research UK, University of Nottingham (U.K.), University of Miami, America''s Blood Centers and the German Red Cross.
For more information, please visit our Web site at: www.Viragen.com Viragen, Inc. Corporate Contact: Douglas Calder, Director of Communications Phone: (954) 233-8746; Fax: (954) 233-1414 E-mail: dcalder@viragen.com CJ Pharma Contact: Jong H. Kim, Director, Global Commercial Phone: (609) 897-0780; Fax: (609) 897-0725 E-mail: jhkok@cj.net
The foregoing press release contains forward-looking statements that can be identified by such terminology such as "expects", "potential", "suggests", "may", "will", or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. In particular, management''s expectations regarding future research, development and/or commercial results could be affected by, among other things, uncertainties relating to clinical trials and product development; availability of future financing; unexpected regulatory delays or government regulation generally; the Company''s ability to obtain or maintain patent and other proprietary intellectual property protection; and competition in general. Forward-looking statements speak only as to the date they are made. The Company does not undertake to update forward-looking statements to reflect circumstances or events that occur after the date the forward-looking statements are made.
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