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| 8-K - ORAGENICS INC | v180934_8k.htm |
Oragenics,
Inc., and RICCI PHARMA Sign Agreement Expected to Provide EvoraPlus® and
EvoraKids™ to the United Nations, UNESCO, UNICEF, World Health Organization and
The Food and Agriculture Organization
Florida-Based
Biotechnology Innovator and Rome-Based Health Product Provider
Expect to
Bring Probiotic Oral Care to Adults and Children in Association with
the
Duc
In Altum Foundation
For
Immediate Release
Tampa, FL (April 12, 2010) –
Florida-based biotechnology company Oragenics, Inc., (OTCBB: ORNI
www.oragenics.com) and RICCI
PHARMA (www.riccipharma.com), a recognized health products company with
offices in Rome and Slovakia, have entered
into a distribution agreement that the parties anticipate will provide
Oragenics’ proprietary oral care probiotic products, EvoraPlus® and EvoraKidsTM, to
RICCI PHARMA. RICCI PHARMA will have exclusive distribution rights through Duc
in Altum, a foundation whose humanitarian projects are inspired by the social
teachings of the late Pope John Paul II. Duc in Altum’s honorary chairman is the
Polish Pope’s former private secretary for over 30 years, Cardinal Stanislaw
Dziwisz, currently Archbishop of Krakow. The foundation, whose projects are
known by the Holy See and encouraged by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal
Tarcisio Bertone, is expected to further promote Oragenics’ products with
the Church’s capillary network of health services as well as with international
organizations such as the United Nations (www.un.org), UNESCO (www.unesco.org),
UNICEF (www.unicef.org), World Health Organization (www.who.int), and the Food
and Agriculture Organization (www.fao.org) in Africa, Asia, South America and
the Caribbean.
As part
of its distribution agreement with Oragenics, RICCI PHARMA is also expected to
exclusively distribute EvoraPlus® and EvoraKids™ to the Association
of Physicians National Health Service in Slovakia and the Association of Italian
Catholic Doctors across
Italy. RICCI PHARMA will also serve as distributor of EvoraPlus® and EvoraKids™ to
independent pharmacies in Belarus, the Baltic States, Romania, Albania, Russia
and Poland. The distribution agreement provides for RICCI PHARMA to
make periodic minimum
purchases.
“We are both proud and excited to forge
this important alliance with RICCI PHARMA, in order to have access to the Duc in
Altum Foundation and the world’s most prominent healthcare organizations to
bring Oragenics’ probiotic oral care products to adults and children in areas
throughout the world where there is a need for better oral care. Through
these global healthcare initiatives, we look forward to having a positive impact
on the pressing oral care needs of millions the world over,” said David B.
Hirsch, Oragenics’ Chief Executive Officer.
“With its
work in oral care probiotics, Oragenics is blazing a new trail in improving oral
care - one that is gaining the attention of such major global champions of
healthcare as the Vatican and the Duc in Altum Foundation and such leading
health organizations as the United Nations, World Health Organization, UNICEF,
UNESCO and the Food and Agriculture Organization. In our
opinion, EvoraPlus®
and EvoraKids™
will
have a major impact on global dental healthcare delivery, and is also a very
important tool to provide an alternative
for oral care in
countries of the third and fourth world where it is almost impossible to
intervene effectively to improve
overall dental health, thereby addressing one of the
biggest healthcare issues faced by these populations,” said Dr. Stefano
Calamita, Chief Executive Officer of RICCI PHARMA.
Michael J.
Hopf, Director of International Sales, and Gerry David, Executive Vice
President, Consumer Products Group, represented Oragenics in negotiating the
agreement with RICCI PHARMA.
EvoraPlus® (www.evoraplus.com) offers a breakthrough
application of probiotics, which have traditionally been used to support
digestive and immune health. EvoraPlus® probiotics are
specifically designed for complete oral care. The industry’s first 100% natural,
all-in-one oral care probiotic mint, EvoraPlus® gently whitens
teeth and helps
alleviate bad breath while supporting gum and tooth health.
EvoraKids™
(www.evorakids.com)
is the first probiotic-based, all-natural oral care chewable created to promote
oral health for children 3 to 10 years old.
The
application of probiotics in oral care was developed by Dr. Jeffrey D. Hillman,
D.M.D., Ph.D., and Chief Scientific Officer at Oragenics, Inc., during his more
than 25 years of research in oral biology, which began at the Harvard-affiliated
Forsyth Institute in Boston and continued at the University of
Florida. Through his research, Dr. Hillman found three strains of
beneficial bacteria that help maintain an optimal balance of beneficial bacteria
in the mouth, naming the patent-pending blend ProBiora3®, the
active ingredient in EvoraPlus® and EvoraKids™.
About
Oragenics, Inc.
Oragenics,
Inc., is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in developing unique proprietary
technologies, some of which are being commercialized and sold in the
over-the-counter consumer healthcare market. The company also has a number of
products in discovery, preclinical and clinical development, with a
concentration in the main therapeutic area of infectious diseases, diagnostics
and oral health. The company has offices located at 3000 Bayport Drive, Suite
685, in Tampa, Florida 33607, and in Progress Corporate Park at 13700 Progress
Boulevard in Alachua, Florida 32615, approximately 15 miles from the campus of
the University of Florida in Gainesville.
About RICCI
PHARMA
RICCI
PHARMA is a pharmaceutical development and distribution company engaged in
providing an exclusive range of products for better health through natural drugs
and nutritional supplements. The company has established a commercial
distribution network and has exclusive relationships with worldwide health
organizations. It has headquarters in Rome, Italy, and Bratislava, Slovakia,
with distribution facilities in Rome and Bari, Italy.
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CONTACTS:
|
David
B. Hirsch
President
and CEO
Oragenics,
Inc.
813-286-7900
ext 252
dhirsch@oragenics.com
SSA
Public Relations
(818)
907-5929
Steve
Syatt
ssyatt@ssapr.com
Cara
Downs
cdowns@ssapr.com
|
Safe Harbor Statement: Under
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release includes
forward-looking statements that reflect the Company’s current views with respect
to future events and financial performance. These forward-looking statements are
based on management’s beliefs and assumptions and information currently
available. The words “believe,” "should," “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,”
“estimate,” “project” and similar expressions that do not relate solely to
historical matters identify forward-looking statements. Investors should be
cautious in relying on forward-looking statements because they are subject to a
variety of risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual
results to differ materially from those expressed in any such forward-looking
statements. These factors include, but are not limited to (i) any failure of
RicciPharma to order products under the distribution agreement or any failure to
order the minimum amounts required under the distribution
agreement, (ii) the inability of the Company to fulfill orders that
may be received under the distribution agreement, (iii) changes in estimated
time for the receipt of orders or timing of the orders and expected size and
amounts of orders of the Company’s products under the distribution agreement any
breach by RicciPharma of the distribution agreement, and (iv) those factors set
forth in our most recently filed annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly report
on Form 10-Q, and other factors detailed from time to time in filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. We expressly disclaim any responsibility to
update forward-looking statements.