X-Message-Number: 12069 From: Date: Mon, 5 Jul 1999 12:49:58 EDT Subject: 21CM, ABS, BT etc There has been an announcement by Kent et al concerning Advanced BioSciences (ABS) etc.(See the Sci.Cryonics newsgroup 04 July 1999 post from ). I thought it would appear on Cryonet today (July 5), but it hasn't, so I append it below. In view of this, it may be helpful for me to review the present and future state of affairs, especially from the standpoint of Cryonics Institute and of prospective members of all cryonics organizations. In the past, Alcor and CryoCare have claimed "state of the art" or "best" cryostasis procedures. The main current refrain is that recent advances at 21st Century Medicine (21CM), including new cryoprotectants and ice blockers, will soon be the basis for the best procedures. Details are still shrouded in secrecy pending patent protection and commercial exploitation, but will eventually emerge. The first (and possibly the only) cryonics organizations to offer the new procedures, based on the announcement, will be Alcor and CryoCare, through BioTransport (BT), although there have been repeated statements by BT leaders that they hope to make arrangements with other cryonics organizations also. Now let me review the general stance of Cryonics Institute (CI). Our current procedures are based on our own research, repeated and evaluated by Yuri Pichugin et al, professional cryobiologists in the Ukraine. (Pichugin is currently working for a U. Cal. group contractually associated with 21CM. 21CM's chief cryobiologist, Greg Fahy, is one of the co-principal investigators supervising Pichugin's work.) The perfusate used is based on glycerol, and the details of procedure were adopted after trying many variations. Other organizations have reported different procedures, alleged to be better, but we rely on our own observations. Some of the alleged improvements produced worse results when we tried them. The "state space" of cryonics experimentation is enormous. As far as I know, no one can possibly, in a reasonable time and with realistic resources, check them all out adequately. We can only test the most promising variations, with new ideas as they occur to us. Our results have been relatively good (read the "Research" pages on our web site), but of course nowhere near perfect. We are currently engaged in new research on a range of parameters, including acceptable methods of ramping up glycerol concentration and including the use of different cryoprotectants. Although our resources are orders of magnitude smaller than those of 21CM, I think we have an excellent chance at least of making improvements, and possibly of making breakthroughs. Our research agenda for the future also includes procedures that may prove LESS costly than current systems, even if results are worse by some criteria. For example, it may turn out that some combination of chemical fixation, drying, and cold storage (at relatively high temperature) will result in good retention of structure, even though inferior retention of function. For those who cannot afford anything else, this could be a life saver. It could also be important in terms of politics and public relations, since it would tend to soften the perception of cryostasis as a perquisite only for the rich. So we intend to continue to offer our current procedures, and improvements thereon, at our current prices, which are much lower than those of other organizations. We may even offer lower-cost procedures, as noted just above. We also intend to make available to our members, as feasible, all the other options, including the more expensive ones likely to emerge from 21CM activity. Exactly how this will develop depends on many factors not yet known. For example, what will be the pricing structure emerging from the 21CM-ABS-BT axis? Will 21CM sell or license to anyone other than ABS? Will contractual arrangements allow ABS to sell or license to other organizations in competition with BT? For example, one of the options CI might want is to license 21CM patents for our own direct use, not through BT. Etc., etc. Possible pricing and policy could cover an enormous range. From the standpoint of 21CM as a business, they want to recoup their research investment as quickly as possible, and maybe they could sell their system to one billionaire for $10 million. On the other hand, they also want to maximize future revenues, so maybe they will settle for a near-term loss in order to build business. Maybe their potential patent protection is nearly iron-clad--or maybe it isn't. Protecting patent rights is notoriously difficult and expensive. Maybe other people can patent variations and then negotiate for a modus vivendi. Maybe entirely different and equally good or better methods will be discovered by others--and there are indeed others already active. Or if one company really develops an effective monopoly on the best procedures, then anti-trust questions could arise. It's pretty murky out there, and we'll just have to see what develops, and adjust. The bottom line, again, is that CI is determined, within its resources and the constraints of reality, to make available to CI members every option that appears to hold promise. Robert Ettinger Cryonics Institute Immortalist Society http://www.cryonics.org ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -------- BioTransport Letter of Agreement From: Date: Sun, 04 July 1999 08:15 PM EDT Message-id: <7lotfc$onl$> As of July 1st, 1999, principals of BioTransport, Inc., CryoCare Foundation, and Advanced BioSciences, Inc. have signed a binding letter of intent affirming that Advanced BioSciences intends to sublicense new cryopreservation technology to BioTransport, and BioTransport intends to use this technology to provide enhanced service to Alcor and CryoCare members. While a formal contract has not been negotiated, principals at the three companies are optimistic that such a contract can exist by the end of this year. BioTransport was formed initially by Fred Chamberlain, Linda Chamberlain, Joe Hovey, and Michael Riskin, of Alcor, as an independent provider of human cryopreservation services including remote standby, transport, perfusion, and cooldown. Michael Riskin, who is now CFO and Vice President of BioTransport, has taken a highly active role this year in developing the new company as an independent provider of human cryopreservation services including remote standby, transport, perfusion, and cooldown. It will first offer its services to CryoCare and Alcor members, with others to follow if satisfactory contracts can be negotiated. Advanced BioSciences was created this year to develop cryonics applications from recent research at 21st Century Medicine. 21st now conducts only cryobiology research, having spun off its hypothermia and resuscitation projects into a new, separate company named Critical Care Research. 21st has no involvement in cryonics and will be launching sales of its first product this summer, the SuperCool X-1000 Ice Blocker. CryoCare Foundation and the Alcor Foundation are cryonics organizations whose needs are complementary. Alcor has expressed interest in results of recent research, while CryoCare wishes to restore its ability to deliver remote- standby service and enhance its cryopreservation services. BioTransport should be able to satisfy these needs on a basis that will be mutually beneficial. In the future, BioTransport and/or Advanced BioSciences may negotiate agreements with additional clients. Currently, however, Alcor and CryoCare are the only cryonics organizations negotiating to receive improved technology from Advanced BioSciences and cryopreservation service from BioTransport. This announcement is made jointly by Saul Kent, Chairman and CEO of Advanced BioSciences and 21st Century Medicine; Charles Platt, President of CryoCare; and Michael Riskin, CFO and Vice President for Business Development at BioTransport. ------------------------------------------------------------- Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=12069