X-Message-Number: 9920 From: "Halperin, Jim" <> Subject: Alleged AIDS Remedy Rights Bought Date: Sat, 20 Jun 1998 17:17:11 -0500 This just came over the AP Wire: > Alleged AIDS Remedy Rights Bought > > (AP Online; 06/20/98) > > > By PAT REBER Associated Press Writer > > JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AP) The rights to an alleged AIDS > remedy that > sparked political and scientific controversy last year have been sold > to a > business consortium, a company spokesman said Saturday. > > The consortium, called Virodene Pharmaceutical Holdings, bought the > majority > interest in Cryopreservation Technologies that developed Virodene > P058, a > spokesman for the consortium, Larry Heidebrecht, told The Associated > Press. > > He declined to name the purchase price, but media reports Friday > said VPH > paid $3.7 million for a 70 percent share. > > "The new investors have assured the previous owners that they have > the money > to take the drug all the way to the market," Heidebrecht said. "They > are in it > for the long haul." > > Researchers claim Virodene dramatically reduced the level of HIV in > > patients' blood and boosted their infection-fighting CD4 cell counts > within > weeks. > > The drug's maker has faced criticism, in part because South African > > researchers deviated from accepted procedures in testing the > experimental AIDS > drug. > > Critics attacked Virodene's developers, Olga Visser and two other > researchers, alleging they conducted unauthorized human experiments, > used a > toxic substance in the drug without proof it worked, and sidestepped > peer > review in seeking government funding. > > Some scientists also criticized the researchers for testing on > humans > without first going through laboratory and animal trials. > > The drug also caused a political scandal: Deputy President Thabo > Mbeki and > other top African National Congress officials are being investigated > for > alleged conflict of interest in connection with the drug. > > The investigation, begun at the request of the opposition > Democratic party, > is probing whether Mbeki had acted unethically in his contacts with > the company > that developed the drug. > > The consortium will bring a cash infusion to press on with research > and > address the concerns of regulators, Heidebrecht said. > > The consortium said it is nearly finished preparing a testing plan > to submit > to the Medicines Control Council, the South African agency that would > have to > approve human trials of the drug. > > > > > > {APWire:Science-0620.201} 06/20/98 > > > Web sites: <http://www.firstimmortal.com><http://www.truthmachine.com> > <http://www.heritagecoin.com> Or to post a review of The First > Immortal: > <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0345420926/002-9094718-5980856 > > > > > > Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=9920