Stand-in CEO insists that Sirona Biochem hasn’t lost its focus
Sirona Biochem announces it will continue to focus on the skin care market and develop new active ingredients for the cosmetics market, and will be unaffected by its change in management.
Last month company CEO Neil Belenkie resigned from the company and with Howard Verrico taking up the role.
The Canadian company has been working on the development of many new active ingredients, one of which was with global manufacturer L’Oréal on Antarctic fish, and Verrico states that this will still be the case.
“I can assure you we are moving along on all initiatives as planned,” Verrico states in an open letter.
Change of plan
When it comes to plans that were in the pipeline prior to Belenkie’s resignation, there have been a few changes, however.
In February this year, Sirona announced the completion of a $1.2M private placement, which was originally expected to be followed up with a US-led investment of approximately $4 million.
However, this initiative was abandoned since terms did not meet the new vision for the direction of the company, with Verrico underlining that Sirona is unwilling to settle for terms that it feels create risk to the current shareholder value.
The new boss states that there are financing needs to be taken into consideration over the next 12-18 months, but that this should not raise concern, especially as there appears to be heightened interest from European investors.
R&D focus
The current R&D focus is to manufacture and monetize its skin lightener as planned with Obagi/ Valeant, and develop the anti-aging library of compounds in anticipation of government funding and commencement of pre-clinical studies.
“Sirona Biochem remains committed to a streamlined business strategy of chemistry, patent and license,” says Verrico.
“Our expertise remains in creating new chemical compounds (pharmaceutical and cosmetic) that have distinct advantages over existing technologies. Each compound that we create will be licensed to an industry-leading company who will be responsible for developing, manufacturing and selling the compound.”
Verrico adds that the value of Sirona lies in its technology and the intention is to put resources behind this and create shareholder value.
He believes that Sirona is well positioned to take advantage of some of the major opportunities that are available and is working to take the company to the next level.
- Published in Life Sciences
Oxford Resources 607,152 shares for debt
<p>The TSX Venture Exchange has accepted for filing the company’s proposal to issue 607,152 shares to settle outstanding debt of $30,357.60.</p>
<p>Number of creditors: One creditor</p>
<p>The company shall issue a news release when the shares are issued and the debt extinguished.</p>
- Published in Mining
46 Reasons why Cannabis Technologies (CAN) will Succeed
Cannabis Technologies has begun trading as InMed Pharmaceuticals (C.IN) since the writing of this article.
1) Investing in biotech can be extremely challenging. There is always a chance that someone will come out with a better product. Typically, it takes a decade or more to approval, followed by commercialization. It usuallycosts tens of millions, to billions of dollars per drug. This can be highly dilutive to a small startup.
2) What if one company had a proprietary cookie cutter system targeting a dozen diseases quicker, cheaper and more effective? I am not sure what Cannabis Technologies will be called in a year from now. I think it will have a new name… perhaps GW Pharmaceuticals or Eli Lily? Or Novartis?
3) Dr. Hossain was chiefly responsible for a $157 million deal with Novartis a decade ago. There was also a $376 million deal with Teva in 2012 based on one of his discoveries. More on that later.
4) Dr. Tarek Mansour (Pfizer) was responsible for multiple FDA approved drugs, where the market value exceeded $1 billion. (Zeffix, Troxatyl, Bosulif, Neratinib and PFE384)
5) The big question is...how many therapy product launches, and strategic partnerships will it take before Big Pharma catches on?
6) The amplitude of possibilities dictates that Cannabis Technologies will one day be a dominant player in the prescription cannabinoid medicine market.
7) Many people now know there are at least 85 different cannabinoids isolated from cannabis exhibiting various effects that could prove therapeutic.
8) They also know that cannabidiol (CBD) alone has shown therapeutic benefits to at least 16 diseases.
9) CAN will take advantage of Strain differences to develop drugs for specific diseases, including:
Glaucoma, Inflammation/Pain/Arthritis, Huntington’s, Epilepsy, Diabetes, Obesity, Cancer & Angiogenesis
10) CAN’s proprietary Cannabinoid Drug Design Platform (“CDP”) allows computer science, statistics, mathematics and engineering to study biological data and processes from the cannabis plant which can be targeted to develop therapies for specific diseases and conditions.
11) What will CAN’s CDP be worth to a company that wants to compete with GWPH…or a better question..what would it be worth to GWPH?
12) The main active ingredients in this are the cannabinoids THC and CBD, but other pharmacologically active cannabinoids are also present and are being investigated.
13) This Platform Technology, combined with CAN’s world renowned scientific team, will enable the company to discover therapies based on proven genomics and unique chemical fingerprints that specific cellular processes leave behind.
14) They will do this both quickly and effectively, with very little money, by outsourcing patented products that are ready for clinical trials and allow a company like Novartis (for example) to absorb all the costs through to commercialization. CAN will retain a fair and reasonable interest that may generate substantial revenue.
Track Record
Dr. Hossain’s successful financial deals based on his drug discoveries over the last 15 years include:
15) 2004: Xenon, Novartis Enter $157M Deal For Obesity Compounds
16) 2006: Xenon and Takeda Announce $75M Agreement To Develop and Commercialize XEN401 for Pain
17) 2006: Xenon Enters Into Anemia Collaboration With Roche ($7 Million for Equity, and $44 Million From Research Funding)
18) 2012: Teva inks $376M deal on Xenon pain program
19) 2009: YM Biosciences Collaboration with the National Research Council of Canada’s Biotechnology Research Institute (NRC-BRI) yielded novel anticancer antibodies that may be safer than similar drugs sold by Genentech/Roche. (another partnership resulted in the production of new breast cancer drug candidates.)
20) 2009: NRC-BRI granted Alethia Biotherapeutics exclusive, worldwide diagnostic rights to a peptide that specifically binds to tumor-associated clusterin in cancer patients.
Who should CAN target?
21) GW Pharmaceuticals has one the broadest clinical pipelines of any company in the marijuana industry…so will CAN.
22) Even though GW may be suffering the typical challenges that all biopharma companies have to endure, with costs far outstripping revenues, they had no problem raising $169.8 million last month.
23) Over 30 years ago, two young men made their way to Vancouver from Seattle to raise money for their software company, and were unfortunately turned down. Their names were Bill Gates and Paul Allen. Very few understood what they had.
24) I think CAN is in the same position today, however, that is changing with Chris Parry writing one of the first articles. Cancer survivor and canabis acdvocate Cheryl Shuman recently endorsed Cannabis Technologies as well.
25) If the billionaire activists want Marijuana to be legalized they most likely would want to facilitate the fast tracking of several revolutionary therapies that will indeed improve the lives of the millions of sufferers around the world.
26) George Soros has spent at least $80 million on the legalization effort since 1994.
27) The late Peter B. Lewis, channeled more than $40 million to influence local debates.
28) The two billionaires’ funding has been unmatched by anyone.
29) Other wealthy activists include: Google billionaire Paul Buchheit, Facebook forefathers Sean Parker and Dustin Moskovitz, and Men’s Wearhouse founder George Zimmer.
30) As of March 31, GWPH had 75 Institutional Holders (sooner or later, they will know about CAN)
31) Analyst Firms Making GWPH Recommendations: Bank of America, Cowen, Piper Jaffray, Leerink Swann, and Morgan Stanley.
Conclusion Check List:
32) World renowned scientific team with multidisciplinary expertise? Check.
33) CSO who has a track record that developed several drugs over 15 years, generating over $500m in revenues? Check
34) Global organizations, governments, and big pharma companies that have previously benefitted from the teams research? Check.
35) Proprietary Cannabinoid Drug Design Platform? Check.
36) Tools to isolate and identify chemical compounds both quickly and effectively? Check.
37) In-house Breeding, Genetics and Cultivation division? Check.
38) Capable of developing compounds for therapies in months rather than years? Check.
39) Target specific diseases and conditions? Check.
40) Outsource early-stage research and trials to conserve capital? Check.
41) Fast Forward through Phase I, Phase II & Phase III quickly and inexpensively compared to traditional Pharma? Check
42) Competitive edge from companies that rely on third-parties to manufacture their treatments? Check
43) Fully-integrated operations to lower costs and increase quality? Check
44) Capable of commercializing therapies in a 1/3 the time of traditional drug development? Check.
45) Anaglous company with a $1.5b market cap? Check
46) Developing medicines for:
– Glaucoma
– Pain and Inflammation
– Orphan Diseases
– Metabolic Disease (Obesity, Diabetes)
– Cancers and Metabolic Diseases? Check.
Dr. Sazzad Hossain, Ph.D., M.Sc.
Chief Scientific Officer
– 20 years of academic and industrial experience in new drug discovery, natural health product development
– Group Leader and Senior Scientist at Biotechnology Research Institute of National Research Council Canada, Government of Canada’s prime biotechnology research organization where he set up pharmacology laboratory to evaluate safety and efficacy of new drugs under development in the areas of cancer, cardiovascular and ocular diseases.
Dr. Tarek S. Mansour, Ph.D., M.Sc.
Scientific Advisor
– Dr. Mansour was responsible for transition of staff and projects to the Pfizer pipeline
-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sabila Biosciences LLC, New York
– Under his leadership, several compounds have progressed to various stages of clinical evaluation including FDA approvals and late stage development including:Zeffix, Troxatyl, Bosulif, Neratinib and PFE384.
Dr. Hyder A. Khoja, Ph.D., M.Sc., A.Ag.
Director of Botanical Research and Cultivation
– 17 years of extensive experience in a broad range of life sciences and business services with strong leadership combined with functional expertise and experience in general business management
– Industry experience spans from initiation, operation, and contribution towards developing several research and business proposals in the fields of Agriculture-Food Security, Food Safety & Sovereignty, Alternative energy, Renewable resources, Biofuels, Nutraceutical, Hydroponics, Agriculture & Land use management and Technology transfer
– Presented his work both in at federal government and academic institutions with authorship in over 18 peer-reviewed papers, primarily in genomics, plant physiology, and alternative energy.
–His work was also recognized and appeared in United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Environment and Natural Resources Management as a working paper for Algae-based Biofuels
Craig Schneider
One of Craig’s first companies that he worked for was Ultra Petroleum. The stock dropped from .95 to .45 before blasting through the stratosphere to a stunning pre split price of close to $200. Put another way, the market cap rose from around $3 million to close to $3 Billion!
Loyal investors were rewarded once again in 2006, as he was the cofounder of Magnum Uranium, which was taken over by Energy Fuels in 2009. Shareholders were once again exposed to another potential 1000{92d3d6fd85a76c012ea375328005e518e768e12ace6b1722b71965c2a02ea7ce} gain by 2011.
Read more at http://www.stockhouse.com/companies/bullboard/c.can/cannabis-technologies-inc#2FOuXY6qmBPTVqry.99
- Published in Medical Marijuana
Sirona licensee completes two SBM-TFC-039 studies
<p>SIRONA BIOCHEM ANNOUNCES SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF TWO FIRST LINE STUDIES BY WANBANG BIOPHARMACEUTICALS</p>
<p>Sirona Biochem Corp. has provided an update. Wanbang Biopharmaceuticals has completed two preclinical efficacy studies of the SGLT2 inhibitor SBM-TFC-039. The studies independently confirm that SBM-TFC-039 increased urinary glucose excretion and improved oral glucose tolerance in normal SD rats. The results were consistent with those previously completed by Sirona Biochem.</p>
<p>The next steps in the validation of SBM-TFC-039 will be the pharmacokinetic study and the 14-day toxicology repeated administration on normal SD rats. If further positive results are obtained, as expected, Wanbang will have completed the first milestone of its licence agreement with Sirona Biochem. This will trigger a second payment to Sirona from Wanbang Biopharmaceuticals, part of the $9.5-million in upfront and milestone payments.</p>
<p>According to a 2013 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association the People’s Republic of China now has the greatest prevalence of diabetes. It is estimated that 11.6 per cent of the adult population or 114 million people are affected; this is the first time that a country has surpassed the United States, which has an estimated 11.3 per cent living with the disease.</p>
<p>It is also estimated that approximately half of all Chinese adults, a total of 493 million people, could be suffering from prediabetes, a preliminary stage in which the sugar metabolism is already disturbed, but diabetes is not yet present.</p>
<p>”Wanbang Biopharmaceuticals’ dedication to quickly advancing this project to clinical trials confirms the strength of Sirona’s partnership with China’s top-ranked diabetes pharmaceutical company. The value of this pharmaceutical to Sirona grows both within China, home of the world’s largest diabetic population and outside China to other potential pharmaceutical partners,” said Howard Verrico, chief executive officer of Sirona Biochem.</p>
<p>We seek Safe Harbor.</p>
<p><span id=”MainContent_NewsHeader”>2014-07-23 07:51 ET – News Release</span></p>
<p>Mr. Howard Verrico reports</p>
- Published in Life Sciences
Six-year-old medical marijuana user runs afoul of Health Canada rules
<p>Now six years old, Liam is registered to start Grade 1 in September at St. Michael school in Fitzroy Harbour, with the help of an educational assistant and full-time nurse.</p>
<p class=”p1″>On Wednesday, he was counting characters in a children’s book from the world of Teletubbies, and seemingly having a pretty good day. “I went to the park,” he said shyly. “I read a book.”</p>
<p class=”p1″>He suffered a small seizure while speaking to the Citizen.</p>
<p class=”p2″>Even though Liam is licensed to use medical marijuana, taking it in extracted oil form violates Health Canada’s new Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations, which came into effect April 1.</p>
<p>Under the regulations, the strains of marijuana that producers can sell are no longer restricted, making it easier to find strains high in CBD, the chemical that treats Liam’s condition the best, but low in THC, a psychoactive component associated with pain relief.</p>
<p>However, licensed producers can only sell dried marijuana. They can’t sell any derivative products, such as oils or foods made with marijuana.</p>
<p>The McKnights receive a boxed shipment of 150 grams of dried marijuana from Bedrocan, one of 13 licensed marijuana producers in Canada, each month. Turning it into the oil that Liam consumes — about a quarter of a cup each day — is not a straightforward task.</p>
<p>“Health Canada says Liam has to smoke it or he has to vaporize it,” said McKnight. “Those are our two options, that’s it. So although they give him a license, the form of delivery is ridiculous.”</p>
<p class=”p1″>The major problem with vaporizing it, McKnight said, is managing the dosage. They want to build up the CBD in his system and keep him stable. With vapour it’s instantaneous, the effects are immediate and you can’t keep track of amount of CBD entering system the way you can with oil that has had its chemical contents analyzed in a lab.</p>
<p>So, instead, they ship the dry buds to the Montreal-based Medical Cannabis Access Society, where it is processed and extracted into coconut oil. Then, it is shipped back to them. McKnight sends a sample of the batch to a laboratory in British Columbia that analyzes the oil’s CBD and THC content so she can give Liam precise doses.</p>
<p>Technically, this process goes against Health Canada regulations.</p>
<p>It is expensive, too. Cannabis is $7.50 per gram. Extraction costs money; shipping costs money; lab work costs money. Liam also undergoes occupational, physical, speech and listening therapy. He has a live-in caregiver, along with the full-time nurse.</p>
<p>“Financially, it’s draining,” said McKnight. “If we were getting an extraction from a licensed producer, it wouldn’t cost nearly this much. I don’t even know how long we’re going to be able to sustain this.”</p>
<p>Adam Greenblatt, the executive director of the cannabis access society, said he believes that as many as 60 or 70 per cent of medical marijuana users would use derivative products if they could legally buy them.</p>
<p>“There’s a huge need for these derivative products in the patient population, a huge desire in this new medical marijuana economy to produce and sell and standardize them,” he said, adding there could even be special prescriptions for these products. “It’s up to Health Canada to get with the times.”</p>
<p>Apart from oils, these include hashish, baked products such as brownies, capsules and tinctures, which are liquid suspensions of cannabis in alcohol or glycerine. Not everyone can vaporize or smoke cannabis.</p>
<p>Greenblatt makes cannabis brownies for his own father, Michael Greenblatt, 65, who has suffered from multiple sclerosis for nearly 30 years and uses medical marijuana to help alleviate his systems. Because of the MS and asthma, his lungs are too weak to handle smoking or vaporizing marijuana.</p>
<p>Greenblatt helps the McKnight family, along with five or six others, to process dried cannabis into oils to treat Dravet syndrome. But he said there is a huge range of uses for products such as these.</p>
<p>Along with epilepsy and MS sufferers, a growing number of cancer patients use cannabis extracts as treatment. Children and elderly patients, especially, would benefit from an option that does not require inhaling smoke or vapour, Greenblatt said.</p>
<p>“It would be cheaper for producers to be able to make it themselves and sell it that way,” he said. “From an economic and business perspective, it makes sense.”</p>
<p>Isaac Oommen, who works at British Columbia’s Compassion Club Society, a cannabis advocacy organization, said that of their roughly 9,700 members, at least 30 per cent use derivative products such as edibles, oils or tinctures.</p>
<p>He said about 60 per cent of incoming members are patients over the age of 65, and among them, at least 80 or 90 per cent are interested in using those types of products.</p>
<p>In 2012, the B.C. Supreme Court ruled that people should be allowed to make their own oils, butters, baked goods and lotions using cannabis, and that designated producers should be able to provide patients with the same.</p>
<p>But the new regulations that came into effect in April mean the case is going back to court.</p>
<p>If the court ruling is found to still stand up under the new regulations, the government would be essentially forced to rewrite those rules, said Greenblatt. But, “These are expensive court battles when really they should just give up the fight,” he said.</p>
<p>For McKnight, who runs a <a href=”https://www.facebook.com/groups/liamsjourney/” target=”_blank”>Facebook page</a> to raise awareness about Liam’s condition, it’s a matter of common sense.</p>
<p>“I really hope that somebody at Health Canada or somebody in this government just finally stands up and says, ‘OK, this is ridiculous. We need to help these kids.’”</p>
<p>Health Canada did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday.</p>
<div class=”byline-dates”>Published on: July 16, 2014Last Updated: July 16, 2014 7:37 PM EDT</div>
<div class=”byline-dates”>Marie-Danielle Smith</div>
- Published in Blog
Sirona Biochem Corporation – CEO Letter to Shareholders
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1472″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><span id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1471″ class=”mw_region”>VANCOUVER, BC</span>–(Marketwired – July 21, 2014) – Sirona Biochem Corp. <span class=”mw_ticker”>(TSX VENTURE: SBM)</span> <span class=”mw_ticker”>(<a href=”http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=srbcf” data-rapid_p=”8″>SRBCF</a>)</span> <span class=”mw_ticker”>(<a href=”http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=zsb.f” data-rapid_p=”9″>ZSB.F</a>)</span> today provided a business update. </span></p>
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1479″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Dear Shareholders and Investors,</span></p>
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1481″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><img style=”float: right;” src=”http://www.financialbuzz.com/videos/07212014/howard.jpg” alt=”Howards” width=”203″ height=”286″ />As announced in our recent news release, I, Howard Verrico, have stepped in as CEO of Sirona Biochem. Although this change is significant, I have always maintained an active role in Sirona’s operations throughout its history making this an efficient transition. I can assure you we are moving along on all initiatives as planned. As founder, Chairman of the Board and a major shareholder I will personally ensure the re</span><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>sponsibilities and deliverables of CEO are achieved. Under supervision of Sirona’s Board, the search, selection and appointment of a new executive management team member will occur as a priority task.</span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><strong>Financial: </strong></span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>In February 2014, we announced the completion of a $1.2M private placement. The original plan was to follow this up with a US led investment of approximately $4 million. This initiative was abandoned since terms did not meet our vision for the direction of our company. The management of the company was and is unwilling to settle for terms that we feel create risk to the current shareholder value. </span></p>
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1484″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>We anticipate minimal financing needs over the next twelve to eighteen months. To avoid unnecessary dilution, we will continue to apply for government grants and loans where applicable rather than pursue an equity raise. Moreover, we are expecting further substantial milestone payments as well as initial royalty payments.</span></p>
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1538″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Our current institutional investors remain very supportive of our future growth strategy. We have recently been encouraged by strong interest from European investors which could bode very well for us going forward. In addition to that, we plan to further increase market awareness for Sirona in the next several months.</span></p>
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1540″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><strong>Strategy: </strong></span></p>
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1542″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Sirona Biochem remains committed to a streamlined business strategy of chemistry, patent and license. </span></p>
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1544″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Our expertise remains in creating new chemical compounds (pharmaceutical and cosmetic) that have distin</span><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>ct advantages over existing technologies. Each compound that we create will be licensed to an industry-leading company who will be responsible for developing, manufacturing and selling the compound. In return, Sirona will receive licensing fees, milestone payments and ongoing royalty payments. </span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><span id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1471″ class=”mw_region”><img style=”float: left;” src=”http://www.financialbuzz.com/videos/07212014/siron.jpg” alt=”Lab” width=”297″ height=”197″ /></span></span><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Through our platform technology, we have been able to diversify our risk across multiple projects, increase our portfolio size more quickly and continue to build our credibility and reputation as experts in the discovery of innovative therapeutics.</span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>The Board of Directors is taking an increasingly active role in refining the company strategy and how it is implemented. Our Board has a diverse and valuable skill set which we are utilizing to the fullest extent. </span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><strong>Operations: </strong></span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>In March, we bolstered our France team with the addition of Claude Nivet. Claude’s official title is Laboratory Manager. This role was developed specifically to assist in growing operations and relieving our Chief Scientific Officer, Geraldine Deliencourt-Godefroy, of some of her non-scientific tasks. This will allow her to focus on innovation and management of the current pipeline. </span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Our current R&D focus is on the following: </span></p>
<ul id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1602″ style=”list-style-type: disc;”>
<li><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Assist Obagi/Valeant in the manufacturing and monetization of our skin lightener. Obagi/Valeant will be responsible for the formulation and sales of the compound;</span></li>
<li id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1601″><span style=”font-size: 12pt;”>Develop the anti-aging library of compounds in anticipation of government funding and commencement of pre-clinical studies; </span></li>
<li><span style=”font-size: 12pt;”>Synthesize the anti-inflammatory compound for our Bloom Burton partnership.</span></li>
</ul>
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1604″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><br />As projects progress and resources become available, we will explore new areas where our technology will add significant value.</span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><strong>Current Business Development: </strong></span></p>
<ul id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1607″ style=”list-style-type: disc;”>
<li><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>At the end of April 2014, Wanbang Biopharmaceuticals began pre-clinical validation for Sirona Biochem’s second generation SGLT2 Inhibitor. To date, Sirona has received Wanbang’s initial licensing fee and the Chinese government’s innovation tax application has been approved. Wanbang has successfully hired an expert in pharmacology and toxicity to lead the project and compound synthesis has begun to ensure quantities of the compound will be available for all future clinical trials. Further updates from Wanbang will become available shortly.</span></li>
<li id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1606″><span style=”font-size: 12pt;”>Obagi Medical Products is moving forward on Sirona Biochem’s skin lightening compound TFC-849. Obagi Medical Products is responsible for all development, manufacturing and sales of the compound and in return Sirona Biochem will receive licensing and milestone fees and ongoing royalty payments.</span></li>
<li><span style=”font-size: 12pt; font-family: arial;”>Our Joint Venture with Bloom Burton and Co. is progressing nicely. Once the first compound is synthesized, it will enter early stage testing. Bloom Burton is Canada’s largest and most active healthcare-specialized investment banking firm. The goal of this joint venture is to conduct collaborative research to develop and commercialize new therapeutics in the areas of inflammation and infectious disease.</span></li>
<li><span style=”font-size: 12pt;”>Sirona’s Chief Scientific Officer recently attended industry meetings in New York City. The meetings were very successful and have generated multiple potential partnerships. We will provide updates regarding these opportunities on the next shareholder letter. Although we have a number of significant partnering initiatives fully executed and underway, we are continuing to explore new partnership opportunities and currently have multiple ongoing conversations with large Pharma and cosmetic companies around the world.</span></li>
</ul>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><br />Our goal has always been for Sirona Biochem to become the global leader in the process of compound stabilization which leads to unlimited applications in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. The value of Sirona Biochem lies in its technology and we intend to put our resources behind this. At the end of the day, our common goal is to create shareholder value which is exactly what we work to accomplish every single day. Sirona is well positioned to take advantage of some of the major opportunities that are available to us and we are working diligently to take our company to the next level. </span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>I sincerely appreciate the past support of our shareholders and ask for your future support as we move forward. </span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Best Regards,</span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Dr. Howard Verrico</span><br /><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”> CEO, Chairman of the Board</span><br /><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”> Sirona Biochem </span></p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”><strong>About Sirona Biochem Corp. </strong></span></p>
<p id=”yui_3_16_0_1_1406034781965_1609″><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Sirona Biochem is not a traditional biotech company. Sirona is a product-pipeline company with a proprietary technology platform developed at its laboratory facility in France. The company specializes in the stabilization of carbohydrate molecules, with the goal of improving compounds’ efficacy and safety. Sirona Biochem’s compounds are being developed for both pharmaceutical and cosmetic marketplaces and are patented as new chemical entities for maximum commercial protection and revenue potential. Newly developed compounds are licensed to leading companies around the world in return for licensing and milestone fees and ongoing royalty payments. TFChem, Sirona Biochem’s wholly-owned French laboratory is a recipient of multiple French national scientific awards and a European Union and French government grant. For more information please visit <a href=”http://www.sironabiochem.com/” rel=”nofollow” data-rapid_p=”10″>www.sironabiochem.com</a>.</span></p>
<p>Contact:</p>
<p><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”> For more information regarding this press release, contact:</span><br /><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Christopher Hopton </span><br /><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>CFO</span><br /><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Sirona Biochem Corp. </span><br /><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Phone: 1.604.282.6064</span><br /><span style=”font-family: arial; font-size: 12pt;”>Email: <a href=”mailto:chopton@sironabiochem.com” rel=”nofollow” data-rapid_p=”11″>chopton@sironabiochem.com</a></span></p>
- Published in Life Sciences
Loopy vertical farm proposed for Singapore
93{92d3d6fd85a76c012ea375328005e518e768e12ace6b1722b71965c2a02ea7ce} of food consumed in Singapore is imported; only 2{92d3d6fd85a76c012ea375328005e518e768e12ace6b1722b71965c2a02ea7ce} of its land is arable. Designboom shows a loopy scheme from Foward Thinking Architecture, part of Spanish architects JAPA
© Forward thinking Architecture via Designboom
From Designboom:
The looping constructs will allow maximum amounts of sunlight to grow crops such as spinach, lettuce, broccoli, and cabbage year-round. By shaping them in a vertical as opposed to horizontal fashion, regular activities that occur along the shorelines remain uninterrupted and are actually enhanced by visuals of the individually exposed layers that house hydroponic and aquaponic instruments. In addition, rotating racks on each floor improve the mechanisms while adding to the skyline of Singapore.
- Published in Blog
SIRONA BIOCHEM CORPORATION – CEO LETTER TO SHAREHOLDERS
Sirona Biochem Corp. has provided a business update in the form of a shareholders letter from the chief executive officer.
Dear shareholders and investors,
As announced in our recent news release, I, Howard Verrico, have stepped in as chief executive officer of Sirona Biochem. Although this change is significant, I have always maintained an active role in Sirona’s operations throughout its history, making this an efficient transition. I can assure you we are moving along on all initiatives as planned. As founder, chairman of the board and a major shareholder, I will personally ensure the responsibilities and deliverables of chief executive officer are achieved. Under supervision of Sirona’s board, the search, selection and appointment of a new executive management team member will occur as a priority task.
Financial
In February, 2014, we announced the completion of a $1.2-million private placement. The original plan was to follow this up with a U.S.-led investment of approximately $4-million. This initiative was abandoned since terms did not meet our vision for the direction of our company. The management of the company was and is unwilling to settle for terms that we feel create risk to the current shareholder value. We anticipate minimal financing needs over the next 12 to 18 months. To avoid unnecessary dilution, we will continue to apply for government grants and loans, where applicable, rather than pursue an equity raise. Moreover, we are expecting further substantial milestone payments, as well as initial royalty payments.
Our current institutional investors remain very supportive of our future growth strategy. We have recently been encouraged by strong interest from European investors, which could bode very well for us going forward. In addition to that, we plan to further increase market awareness for Sirona in the next several months.
Strategy
Sirona Biochem remains committed to a streamlined business strategy of chemistry, patent and licence.
Our expertise remains in creating new chemical compounds (pharmaceutical and cosmetic) that have distinct advantages over existing technologies. Each compound that we create will be licensed to an industry-leading company who will be responsible for developing, manufacturing and selling the compound. In return, Sirona will receive licensing fees, milestone payments and ongoing royalty payments.
Through our platform technology, we have been able to diversify our risk across multiple projects, increase our portfolio size more quickly, and continue to build our credibility and reputation as experts in the discovery of innovative therapeutics.
The board of directors is taking an increasingly active role in refining the company strategy and how it is implemented. Our board has a diverse and valuable skill set, which we are utilizing to the fullest extent.
Operations
In March, we bolstered our France team with the addition of Claude Nivet. Claude’s official title is laboratory manager. This role was developed specifically to assist in growing operations and relieving our chief scientific officer, Geraldine Deliencourt-Godefroy, of some of her non-scientific tasks. This will allow her to focus on innovation and management of the current pipeline. Our current research and development focus is on the following:
- Assist Obagi/Valeant in the manufacturing and monetization of our skin lightener; Obagi/Valeant will be responsible for the formulation and sales of the compound;
- Develop the anti-aging library of compounds in anticipation of government funding and commencement of preclinical studies;
- Synthesize the anti-inflammatory compound for our Bloom Burton partnership.
As projects progress and resources become available, we will explore new areas where our technology will add significant value.
Current business development
- At the end of April, 2014, Wanbang Biopharmaceuticals began preclinical validation for Sirona Biochem’s second-generation SGLT2 Inhibitor. To date, Sirona has received Wanbang’s initial licensing fee, and the Chinese government’s innovation tax application has been approved. Wanbang has successfully hired an expert in pharmacology and toxicity to lead the project, and compound synthesis has begun to ensure quantities of the compound will be available for all future clinical trials. Further updates from Wanbang will become available shortly.
- Obagi Medical Products is moving forward on Sirona Biochem’s skin lightening compound TFC-849. Obagi Medical Products is responsible for all development, manufacturing and sales of the compound, and, in return, Sirona Biochem will receive licensing and milestone fees and ongoing royalty payments.
- Our joint venture with Bloom Burton and Co. is progressing nicely. Once the first compound is synthesized, it will enter early stage testing. Bloom Burton is Canada’s largest and most active health-care-specialized investment banking firm. The goal of this joint venture is to conduct collaborative research to develop and commercialize new therapeutics in the areas of inflammation and infectious disease.
- Sirona’s chief scientific officer recently attended industry meetings in New York City. The meetings were very successful and have generated multiple potential partnerships. We will provide updates regarding these opportunities on the next shareholder letter. Although we have a number of significant partnering initiatives fully executed and under way, we are continuing to explore new partnership opportunities and currently have multiple ongoing conversations with large pharma and cosmetic companies around the world.
Our goal has always been for Sirona Biochem to become the global leader in the process of compound stabilization, which leads to unlimited applications in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. The value of Sirona Biochem lies in its technology, and we intend to put our resources behind this. At the end of the day, our common goal is to create shareholder value, which is exactly what we work to accomplish every single day. Sirona is well positioned to take advantage of some of the major opportunities that are available to us, and we are working diligently to take our company to the next level.
I sincerely appreciate the past support of our shareholders and ask for your future support as we move forward.
Best regards,
Dr. Howard Verrico
Chief executive officer, chairman of the board
Sirona Biochem
- Published in Life Sciences
Sirona hires PRC Partners for consulting services
<p>SIRONA ANNOUNCES SHARES FOR SERVICES AGREEMENT</p>
<p>Sirona Biochem Corp. has entered into a business consulting agreement with PRC Partners Ltd. of Hong Kong for a six-month term commencing July 15, 2014. As compensation for the services to be provided, PRC will receive a total of 1,500,000 common shares of the Company, in tranches of 250,000 common shares each, on a monthly basis starting August 15, 2014. PRC will also receive stock options in the Company, under the Company’s stock option plan, entitling it to purchase 500,000 common shares at a price of $0.15 per share and 500,000 common shares at a price of $0.20 per share expiring 60 days after the Agreement is terminated. Services to be provided by PRC include consultation, advice, and the arrangement of strategic relationships with other companies and the acquisition of projects, access to capital markets in Europe, and similar activities designed to further the business and development of the Company.</p>
<p>The Agreement and all securities proposed to be issued thereunder are subject to the acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange.</p>
<p>About PRC Partners</p>
<p>PRC Partners is a Hong Kong-based corporate development consulting firm owned Frank Haentjes. Mr. Haentjes is a native of Cologne, Germany, raised and educated in Brazil, Germany and the United States. He has been living and working in China for much of the last decade, successfully assisting Canadian public companies in tapping investment funds from State-owned Enterprises and high-net-worth individuals. PRC Partners has a self-professed focus on the discovery of undervalued and promising growth companies, and serves these companies by increasing visibility and accessing capital through an experienced network of investors. Due to the increasing demand from his investors, Mr. Haentjes has taken a strong interest in technology as well as in biotech/healthcare deals that are either public or about to go public. He has extensive relationships in Asia, Europe and the Middle East. He will be providing the services on behalf of PRC Partners.</p>
<p>We seek Safe Harbor.</p>
- Published in Life Sciences
Affinor Growers Announces Management Integration
Affinor Growers (CSE:AFI)(OTCQB:RSSFF)(FRANKFURT:1AF) (“Affinor” or the “Corporation) integrates COO from Vertical Designs Ltd. As part of the intended integration of Vertical Design Ltd into Affinor Growers, CEO Sebastien Plouffe and Chairman of the Board Nick Brusatore have appointed Jarrett Malnarick as Chief Operating Officer, effective immediately.
Malnarick replaces former COO Tegan Adams, who is moving to an agricultural operations consulting role following her hard work establishing due diligence, market analysis, and operational plans for Affinor’s growing roster of facilities and projects.
The move helps integrate Malnarick into Affinor’s operations in a position that makes full use of his working knowledge of VDL’s technology. Malnarick will report to the CEO and Chairman.
Malnarick will assume responsibility for operations, alignment and prioritization of company developments, acquisitions and projects. He is known for his hands on approach and has over 15 years experience in product development, retail logistics, operational systems development, effective team building and regulatory compliance.
While with Vertical Designs, Malnarick was responsible for managing operations and assisting CEO Nick Brusatore with corporate strategy. In that role he helped to fund several technological developments, managed third party validation, conducted market analysis, patent applications, license agreements and independent evaluations for the company setting the platform for effective acquisition.
Malnarick ran his own successful consulting company for over 10 years assisting companies with acquisitions, product development, design costing and ROI analysis, organizational budgets, developmental funding through grants and tax credit programs, new facility process planning, quality engineering and product regulatory compliance to Health Canada and international standards through the design and implementing operational systems. He originally worked with Vertical Designs Ltd. as a consultant and later joined their team in 2011.
Malnarick has held a number of executive positions and has earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Victoria.
Adams said of the change, “It’s been a wonderful experience working with the Affinor team, and I’m proud to have helped the company surge forward in the way it has. The role I enjoyed at the company has put me in touch with a lot of interesting projects and companies, and the reputation I’ve built while at the organization makes this the perfect time to make the step to consulting. I will continue to be in contact with the Affinor team and remain open to working with the company down the road as needed.”
Sebastien Plouffe, President & CEO says of the appointment, “This reorganization is important for Affinor Growers, as we will be relying on VDL technology heavily and nobody knows the system better than Jarrett. I’d like to personally thank Tegan Adams for her devoted effort and energy that she brought to Affinor during her time as COO, and she will always be a part of the Affinor family.”
About Affinor Growers Inc.
Affinor Growers is a diversified publicly traded company on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol (“AFI”). Affinor is focused on growing high quality crops such as romaine lettuce, spinach, strawberries and high quality medical Marijuana. Affinor is committed to becoming a pre-eminent grower, using exclusive vertical farming techniques.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors
AFFINOR GROWERS INC.
“Sebastien Plouffe”
President & CEO
The CSE has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release
FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION
This News Release contains forward-looking statements. The use of any of the words “anticipate”, “continue”, “estimate”, “expect”, “may”, “will”, “project”, “should”, “believe” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. These statements speak only as of the date of this News Release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks including various risk factors discussed in the Company’s disclosure documents which can be found under the Company’s profile on www.sedar.com. This News Release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
- Published in Medical Marijuana