BSKB Medical Ventures, LLC Licenses New Class of Potential Antibiotics; Forms New Venture Called Pyro Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

BIOWIRE2K

COSTA MESA, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)--Feb. 5, 2002

BSKB Medical Ventures, LLC today announced it has exclusively licensed the rights to commercialize a technology relating to a new class of potential antibiotics from the California State University, Fullerton.

To exploit this technology, BSKB Medical Ventures has established a new company, Pyro Pharmaceuticals Inc., which has since licensed the technology from the University. Pyro Pharmaceuticals closed a Series "A" financing round in November 2001.

The licensed technology results from the research of Christopher R. Meyer, Ph.D., associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Cal State Fullerton. Meyer's work focuses on a novel metabolic pathway that is essential for bacterial viability.

"Dr. Meyer has identified a unique target that will be used to develop a novel class of antibiotics against a wide range of multi-drug resistant pathogenic microorganisms," said Alan M. Schechter, managing director of BSKB Medical Ventures and the chairman and CEO of Pyro Pharmaceuticals.

"The company expects to receive broad patent coverage on the pathway and on selective drug candidates," commented Leonard R. Svensson, J.D., Partner, Birch Stewart Kolasch & Birch, LLP, the company's patent counsel.

BSKB Medical Ventures (www.bskbmv.com) is a strategic management consulting firm specializing in medical device, biotechnology, pharmaceutical, diagnostic and health-care business ventures. The company is located at 650 Town Center Dr., Suite 620, Costa Mesa, Calif. 92626; 714/708-8567; e-mail [e-mail].

Birch Stewart Kolasch & Birch, with offices in Costa Mesa, and Falls Church, Va., is a full service intellectual property law firm and last year ranked fourth in the United States in the number of patents granted for its clients.