Abviva receives Japanese patent for Mammastatin Serum Assay

May 18 2010

Abviva, Inc. (Pink Sheets: ABVV), a biomedical company engaged in the development and commercialization of breast cancer related applications of Mammastatin, announced today that the Japanese Patent Office issued two patents on the core technology that may be used for therapeutic applications and in the Company's breast cancer risk assessment test, the Mammastatin Serum Assay (MSA). The patents are the most recent of 13 international and U.S. patents to issue to the University of Michigan for breast cancer diagnostic and therapeutic uses of Mammastatin.    

"We are very pleased with this positive development," said Barrett Evans, CEO of Abviva. "Not only will these patent grants allow us to penetrate the Japanese market with proprietary technology, they further validate, along with previous patent grants covering 16 European countries, Canada, Australia, and the United States, the global patentability of the Mammastatin technology."

The MSA was initially developed at the University of Michigan Cancer Center and is licensed exclusively to Abviva by the University for scientific and commercial development as a blood test to assess women's health. In scientific correlation studies women who tested high with the MSA test showed to have lower risk of breast cancer than women who tested low. These findings align with results of the original research conducted at the University of Michigan Cancer Center that demonstrated Mammastatin was normally produced by breast epithelial cells in healthy women and was missing or reduced in transformed breast epithelial cells.

"This further solidifies the domestic and international intellectual property protection strategy we have implemented with the University of Michigan," continued Mr. Evans. "The issuance of this patent will be very important as we gain regulatory approval and market presence for the Mammastatin technology internationally. These newest patent grant notifications further expand our worldwide patent protection and marketability for MSA."