Melbourne, Mar 27, 2008 (ABN Newswire) - Australian Biotech Solagran Limited today announced the opening in Russia of the world’s first commercial scale plant for the isolation and extraction of pharmaceutical grade polyprenols.
The plant will be operated by SibEX, an 85 percent owned subsidiary of Solagran. It was opened by Mr Victor Kress, the Governor of the Tomsk Region in south western Siberia.
Also in attendance at the opening ceremony were the Deputy Governor of the Tomsk Region Mrs Oksana Kozlovskaya and the Chairman of the Tomsk Regional Duma, Mr Boris Maltsev.
Speakers at the opening ceremony spoke of the plant's importance, not only for the economic and social wellbeing of the Tomsk Region, but also for Russia generally as well as for the wider international community.
The plant will be used to manufacture a family of natural pharmaceuticals which Solagran has collectively trademarked Bioeffectives. These are multiple molecule natural substances which each have a wide range of applications and very low side effects. However the main purpose of the plant will be to produce polyprenols.
According to Solagran Executive Chairman Dr Vagif Soultanov, "polyprenols are perhaps the most interesting and valuable new class of pharmaceutical substance developed over the past 30-35 years, and have been the subject of a great deal of research, particularly in Russia and Japan".
Dr Soultanov said that "Polyprenols are long chain isoprenoid alcohols which play a key role in cell metabolism and are known to be effective in dealing with a range of conditions including hepatitis, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease and conditions associated with chronic alcoholism; for which there are no satisfactory existing treatments. "
"They have also been proven to have very low side effects and are extremely powerful as liver protectors", he said.
Far too complex to synthesise, until now polyprenols have only been available to researchers in analytical quantities and at levels of purity well below that required for pharmaceutical production. Solagran's internationally patented technology now permits production of high purity polyprenols in commercial quantities.
Last week, Russian regulators released for sale the world's first prescription pharmaceutical based on polyprenols. Called Ropren, in honour of Solagran's Research Director Professor Victor Roschin, its active ingredient Bioeffective R contains a specific combination of polyprenols.
During the opening ceremony, representatives of the Tomsk Regional Government emphasised the importance of having a biotech company with world leading technology focusing its production activities in their region - particularly when that technology was already commercialised.
In his opening address, the Governor Mr Kress said that it was doubly pleasurable for him to see the plant built with technology developed by Solagran in Russia and using the endless supply of raw materials (conifer needles) available in the Tomsk Region. He also made it very clear that Solagran would have his full and unqualified support in establishing a much larger GMP certified facility within the Tomsk Special Economic Zone.
The Deputy Governor Mrs Kozlovskaya was also very positive about the development. "The opening of this plant inaugurates the creation of the biotechnological complex in the Tomsk Region. The nanotechnological concepts and ideas that Solagran is planning to realise in the Special Economic Zone are really pioneering ones."
As part of the opening ceremony, Governor Kress and Solagran Director Charles Pellegrino signed a special co-operation agreement between Solagran and the Tomsk Regional Government.
HIGH RESOLUTON VERSIONS OF THE ENCLOSED PHOTOGRAPHS CAN BE OBTAINED FROM SOLAGRAN
Contact
Denis Kilroy
Executive Director
Solagran Limited
Email: Denis.Kilroy@solagran.com
Phone: +61 3 9820 2699
Fax: +61 3 9820 3155
Mobile: +61 411 222 844
Web: www.solagran.com
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