The studies were conducted in a rat fungal model of Candida albicans in the laboratory of Dr. Kishor Wasan at UBC. Kidney and organ colony forming units (CFU) were used as an indicator of antifungal activity, and kidney toxicity was indirectly assessed by determining creatinine concentration in plasma. Significant antifungal activity was seen at dosage levels where no kidney toxicity was observed. The results will be submitted to a scientific journal in the coming months.
“This data serves as further validation of iCo-009’s ability to safely kill fungal infections without the need to intravenously infuse Amphotericin B,” stated Andrew Rae, President & CEO of iCo Therapeutics. “These results not only corroborate those generated by Dr. Kish Wasan’s lab in the rat Aspergillus fumigatus model, but show an increasingly positive trend.”
iCo-009 has the potential to treat not only systemic fungal infections, which have emerged as important causes of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients (e.g., AIDS, cancer chemotherapy, organ or bone marrow transplantation), but also parasitical diseases such as Leishmaniasis in the developing world. iCo plans to develop iCo-009 under the 505(b)(2) section of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which expressly permits the FDA to reference safety data not developed by the applicant for approval of a New Drug Application (NDA). This approach can potentially reduce the development time and expense for approval of a drug.
]]>VANCOUVER, Canada – iCo Therapeutics Inc. (TSX-V: ICO) announced today that it has closed a non-brokered private placement to raise gross proceeds of $1,140,450 through the issuance of 3,801,500 common shares at a price of $0.30 per share. The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the offering for general corporate purposes and working capital. A finder’s fee of 6% is payable to certain arm’s length third parties with respect to a portion of the private placement. All common shares issued in the private placement will be subject to a four month hold period, with the exception of 129,000 common shares that are not subject to a trading restriction.
]]>VANCOUVER, Canada – iCo Therapeutics Inc. (TSX-V: ICO) announced today that it intends to complete a non-brokered private placement to raise gross proceeds of $1,140,450 through the issuance of 3,801,500 common shares at a price of $0.30 per share. The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the offering for general corporate purposes and working capital. A finder’s fee of 6% will be payable to certain arm’s length third parties with respect to a portion of the private placement.
The private placement is expected to close on or about June 4, 2008 and is subject to regulatory approval, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.
]]>VANCOUVER, Canada— iCo Therapeutics Inc. (TSX-V: ICO) today reported interim financial results (unaudited) for the three months ended March 31, 2008. Amounts, unless specified otherwise, are expressed in Canadian dollars and in accordance with Canadian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (Canadian GAAP).
Summary Q1 2008 Results
Selected Statement of Operations Data (see attached file) 2008.05.30_iCo_Q1.pdf
We incurred a net loss of $769,576 for the three months ended March 31, 2008 compared to a net loss of $868,877 for the same period in 2007, representing a decrease of approximately $99,301. The decrease in our net loss was principally caused by a decrease in research and development expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2008 partially offset by an increase in amortization and stock based compensation expense.
Interest income for the three months ended March 31, 2008 was $10,300, compared to $11,548 for the three months ended March 31, 2007.
Research and development expenses were $437,975 for the three months ended March 31, 2008 compared to $623,114 for the same period in 2007, representing a decrease of $185,139. The decrease in research and development expenses was primarily due to the fact that we did not incur any costs related to the manufacturing of drug products during the three months ended March 31, 2008 other than ongoing stability testing for iCo-007, whereas during the three months ended March 31, 2007 we incurred expenses in connection with the manufacturing of drug product for Phase I clinical trials for iCo-008.
For the three months ended March 31, 2008 general and administrative expenses were $267,916 compared to $251,375 for the same period in 2007, representing an increase of $16,541. This increase was primarily a result of increased staffing related to our public company activities. However, these added public company expenses were partially offset by reduced professional fees for the three months ended March 31, 2007.
We realized a net cash outflow of $804,571 for the three months ended March 31, 2008 reflecting overall operating costs for the company. This compares to a net cash inflow of $1,246,127 for the three months ended March 31, 2007, which was principally due to financing proceeds of $2,521,743 offset by cash outflow from operations and investing activities of $1,275,616.
Liquidity and Outstanding Share Capital
As at March 31, 2008, we had cash and cash equivalents of $1,127,904 compared to $1,931,407 as at December 31, 2007.
For complete financial results, please see our filings at http://www.sedar.com.
]]>VANCOUVER, Canada— iCo Therapeutics Inc. (TSX-V: ICO) is pleased to announce that the company has acquired the exclusive worldwide rights to iCo-009, an oral reformulation of Amphotericin B (“Amp B”) for the treatment of systemic fungal infections and Leishmaniasis.
AmpB is a generic drug that has been in use for approximately 50 years and is considered one of the most effective agents in the treatment of systemic fungal infections. Current use of Amp B is limited as it is currently administered intravenously and has significant infusion related side effects and kidney toxicity. The oral reformulation, iCo-009, was invented in the Wasan Lab at the University of British Columbia (UBC) by Drs. Kishor and Ellen Wasan.
“iCo’s innovative partnership with UBC illustrates the forward thinking and leading edge nature of both our organizations,” stated Andrew Rae, iCo’s President & CEO. “iCo views the enormous market and compassionate use potential of a novel, oral Amphotericin drug as a win-win scenario for shareholders and our global community alike.”
About Fungal Infections & Leishmaniasis
It has been estimated that fungal infections may account for up to 30% of deaths in immunocompromised individuals, particularly those patients with cancer, AIDS, diabetes, and organ transplant recipients. In the developing world, AmpB is also an effective weapon against Leishmaniasis, a parasite contracted by approximately 2 million people a year, with 12 million presently infected worldwide. If left untreated, Visceral Leishmaniasis can have a fatality rate as high as 100% within two years (World Health Organization).
VANCOUVER, Canada— iCo Therapeutics Inc. (TSX-V: ICO) announces that Andrew Rae, iCo’s President and Chief Executive Officer, will provide an update on the Company’s progress at BioFinance 2008. Mr. Rae’s presentation will take place on Wednesday, May 7th at 3:00 p.m. EDT in the Trinity IV Room of the Toronto Marriott at Eaton Centre. BioFinance is the Canadian Life Science industry’s leading investor conference.
]]>VANCOUVER, Canada— iCo Therapeutics Inc. (TSX-V: ICO) today reported financial results for the year ended December 31, 2007. Amounts, unless specified otherwise, are expressed in Canadian dollars and in accordance with Canadian Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (Canadian GAAP).
“2007 was an important year for iCo”, stated Andrew Rae, iCo’s President & CEO. “We expanded and matured our product portfolio to reflect our risk-mitigating strategy, and the company is now focused on enhancing the value of iCo’s existing therapeutic assets for our shareholders.”
2007 Operating Highlights
• iCo initiated a Phase I clinical trial for iCo-007, a second-generation antisense candidate for diabetic macular edema.
• iCo completed a reverse takeover transaction (“RTO”) with Beanstalk Capital Ltd., taking iCo public on the TSX-Venture exchange.
• iCo obtained an exclusive option on iCo-009, an oral reformulation of Amphotericin B, from the University of British Columbia.
• iCo obtained an exclusive worldwide license for CAT-213, (now iCo-008), a human monoclonal antibody with Phase II clinical history, and completed a round of manufacturing of drug substance to enable further Phase II clinical studies.
Summary Fiscal 2007 Results
We recorded a net loss of $5,187,359 ($0.41 per common share) for the year ended December 31, 2007 compared to a net loss of $2,539,530 ($0.28 per common share) for fiscal 2006. The increase in net loss for fiscal 2007 compared to fiscal 2006 was primarily due to increases in both research and development expenses and general and administrative expenses as a result of increased operational activity for the company in 2007. The results of operations were in line with management’s expectations.
Interest income for the year ended December 31, 2007 was $40,254 compared to $25,102 for the year ended December 31, 2006 due to a higher surplus cash balance in 2007.
Research and development expenditures were $3,714,665 for fiscal 2007, compared to $1,760,011 for fiscal 2006. The increase in research and development expenses was largely attributable to increased costs relating to consultants and contract research organization expenses as iCo-007 entered into a Phase I clinical trial; and consultant and contract manufacturing expenses related to the manufacture of iCo-008 drug product in preparation for a Phase II clinical trial. General and administration expenses increased to $963,695 in fiscal 2007 from $513,567 in fiscal 2006. This increase is primarily a result of significant professional fees incurred related to the Company’s initial public offering attempt in the first half of 2007 and the RTO completed in the fourth quarter of 2007. Amortization was $114,864 for fiscal 2007 compared to $69,068 for fiscal 2006.
Stock-based compensation increased to $203,883 for the year, as compared to $190,578 for 2006.
Liquidity and Outstanding Share Capital
As of December 31, 2007, the Company had cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $1,931,407. As of December 31, 2007, the Company had 17,913,181 common shares issued and outstanding and 1,531,072 common shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding stock options at a weighted-average exercise price of $0.42 per share.
For complete financial results, please see our filings at http://www.sedar.com.
]]>The poster, “iCo-007, a VEGF “+” Agent for the Potential Treatment of Diabetic Macular Edema and Diabetic Retinopathy”, can be viewed during the Macular Edema in Diabetes poster session on Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 from 3:00 PM – 4:45 PM in Hall B/C of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention Center. Dr. Peter Hnik, iCo Therapeutics’ Chief Medical Officer, will be in attendance to respond to questions.
Designed and discovered by ISIS Pharmaceuticals Inc., (NASDAQ: ISIS), iCo-007 is a second-generation antisense inhibitor targeting c-Raf kinase mRNA for the treatment of DME and Diabetic Retinopathy. iCo licensed the worldwide exclusive rights to all therapeutic applications of iCo-007 from ISIS in 2005.
“DME is an unmet medical need representing vast market potential for novel compounds such as iCo-007”, said Andrew Rae, iCo’s President & CEO. “It is our hope that iCo-007’s ongoing Phase I trial in DME patients will represent a vital step in developing a treatment for this increasingly prevalent disease.”
About iCo-007
iCo-007 is expected to decrease swelling in the retina and related visual impairment by decreasing the signaling of multiple growth factors, including VEGF, IGF, bFGF, EPO and HGF that signal through the c-Raf kinase / MAP kinase pathway. iCo-007 is currently in an open label, dose escalating Phase I clinical trial in DME patients. The primary endpoint of the trial is safety, with visual acuity and measures of retinal thickness serving as secondary endpoints. iCo-007 may also be a potential treatment for certain oncology indications, as c-Raf kinase is the predominant Raf isoform responsible for regulating cellular growth in ovarian cancer.
About Diabetic Macular Edema
There are currently no approved therapeutics for DME, the leading cause of blindness in working age adults. DME currently affects about 1.6 million people in the U.S. alone, a number that is expected to grow as Diabetes is forecast to increase by almost 50% in the US by 2025.
Pre-IND meetings represent a unique opportunity to gain FDA guidance in regards to overall clinical development plans. In this instance a clinical path and proposed 505(b)(2) strategy for iCo-009 will be discussed.
“iCo continues to be impressed by the pre-clinical data generated by the Wasan lab at the University of British Columbia (UBC)” stated Andrew Rae, President & CEO of iCo Therapeutics. “Input from the FDA will allow us to further refine and optimize our proposed clinical plan and ensure we are on the most efficient roadmap to approval.”
The Pre-IND meeting will be held on Friday May 2nd, 2008.
About iCo-009
iCo-009 represents a new drug delivery technology with the potential to reprofile other parenteral drugs to the oral route of administration.
The publication, “Enhanced drug absorption using lipids: A case study presenting the development and pharmacological evaluation of a novel lipid-based oral Amphotericin B formulation for the treatment of systemic fungal infections”, provides further detail on the potential mechanisms by which oral iCo-009 knocks down fungal infections.
Publication highlights:
• iCo-009 significantly decreased (95%) organ fungal concentration of Aspergillus fumigatus compared to controls in the brain and the spleen, two organs where Aspergillus fumigatus typically localizes in this animal model.
• iCo-009 shows enhanced gastrointestinal tract absorption, plasma concentration, and tissue distribution.
• iCo-009 shows minimal renal toxicity.
• iCo-009 significantly decreased plasma galactomannan antigen levels. Detection of galactomannan in the blood can be used to diagnose Aspergillus fumigatus infections in humans.
“iCo continues to be impressed by the work of Drs. Kishor & Ellen Wasan,” stated Andrew Rae, President & CEO of iCo Therapeutics. “Their work continues to improve upon the iCo-009 formulation represented in the paper, with newer formulations showing even more dramatic anti-fungal activity and bioavailability. iCo-009 has the potential to treat not just systemic fungal infections, but also parasitical diseases such as Leishmaniasis in the developing world. iCo remains very committed to UBC’s global access policy and we look forward to proceeding with development in both markets.”
iCo has an option agreement with The University of British Columbia (UBC) for iCo-009’s development, which also represents a new drug delivery technology with the potential to reprofile other IV administered drugs to the oral route of administration. iCo plans to develop iCo-009 under the 505(b)(2) section of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which expressly permits the FDA to reference safety data not developed by the applicant for approval of a New Drug Application (NDA).
Reference:
The paper is available in the March 17, 2008 edition of Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews. K. Sachs-Barrable, S. Lee, E. Wasan, S. Thornton, K. Wasan. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews 60 (2008) 692–701.
iCo plans to develop iCo-008 for Vernal Keratoconjunctivitis (VKC), a severe ocular allergy that may pose a threat to vision. Eotaxin, a chemo-attractant for eosinophils and a ligand for chemokine receptor 3 (CCR3), represents a well-established target for multiple allergic conditions. iCo-008’s pre-clinical and clinical history indicates that iCo-008 may be effective in several large market systemic indications, including severe asthma, food allergies and allergic rhinitis. iCo plans to out-license systemic indications on a worldwide basis, and has sufficient antibody manufactured to enable a partner in certain additional Phase II indications.
“iCo-008 is an excellent example of iCo’s reprofiling strategy at work”, stated Andrew Rae, President & CEO of iCo. “iCo-008’s systemic indications lay outside of iCo’s core expertise; however these potential billion dollar markets would serve as a valuable near-term Phase II program for a partner.”
iCo has received iCo-008 drug substance from Lonza, which was manufactured in its cGMP facilities in Slough, UK. Subsequently iCo moved the drug substance to a fill-finish site for the final stage of manufacturing. iCo is pleased to report that the iCo-008 drug product is within specifications and contains a high antibody yield. Lonza is one of the world’s leading suppliers to the pharmaceutical industry in the production of active pharmaceutical ingredients. Lonza holds iCo’s master cell bank, carried out process development on the program and has previous experience manufacturing iCo-008.
iCo-008’s Clinical Advisory Team
iCo Therapeutics is also pleased to announce a scientific and clinical advisory team that will help guide the development of iCo-008. Dr. Santa Ono, iCo’s Chief Scientific Officer, is a leading authority in the fields of immunology and ophthalmology. Professor Ono has directed multiple research and development programs, including that of iCo-008 (formerly known as CAT-213). Dr. Ono is currently Vice Provost for Academic Initiatives and Deputy to the Provost at Emory University.
Dr. Andrea Leonardi is Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology in the Department of Neuroscience, University of Padua. Dr. Leonardi is an internationally sought opinion leader in ocular allergy and immunology. He has published widely and been involved in clinical development in the area of VKC.
About iCo-008
iCo-008 targets eotaxin-1, which is associated with the chemokine receptor CCR3. iCo believes eotaxin-1 plays an important role in mast cell degranulation and attracting eosinophils to inflammation sites – a condition called eosinophilia. Eosinophilia can occur in a number of disorders, such as allergic ocular disease, severe asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, and other inflammatory disorders, such as inflammatory bowel disease and Crohn’s disease. Blocking eotaxin-1 has been shown to be effective in inhibiting early phase mast cell activation as well as late phase eosinophilia. This broad spectrum mechanism of action is unique and differentiates iCo-008 from other available agents.
“Because our antisense technology enables us to rapidly discover so many highly selective antisense drugs to diverse and important disease targets, we are not able to invest in the development of every promising drug candidate. By licensing drugs at various points in development, we can continue to expand the scope and value of our external pipeline in therapeutic areas that are outside of our key focus, as evidenced by this latest clinical milestone from iCo,” said C. Frank Bennett, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Research at Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. “We are enthusiastic about the potential for iCo-007 as a treatment for diabetic macular edema.”
About iCo-007
Designed and discovered by Isis, iCo-007 is a second-generation antisense drug that inhibits the production of c-Raf kinase, an enzyme associated with the formation of new and often abnormal or fragile blood vessels in the eye. Blood vessel breakage and leakage can contribute to vision loss, and iCo-007 is expected to decrease swelling in the retina and related visual impairment by decreasing the signaling of various growth factors such as VEGF that signal through the c-Raf kinase / MAP kinase pathway.
About Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Isis is exploiting its expertise in RNA to discover and develop novel drugs for its product pipeline and for its partners. The Company has successfully commercialized the world’s first antisense drug and has 17 drugs in development. Isis’ drug development programs are focused on treating cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Isis’ partners are developing drugs for a wide variety of diseases. Ibis Biosciences, Inc., Isis’ wholly owned subsidiary, is developing and commercializing the Ibis T5000 Biosensor System, a revolutionary system to identify infectious organisms. As an innovator in RNA-based drug discovery and development, Isis is the owner or exclusive licensee of over 1,500 issued patents worldwide. Additional information about Isis is available at http://www.isispharm.com.
This press release includes forward-looking statements regarding Isis’ business, its partnership strategies, its collaboration with iCo Therapeutics and the therapeutic potential of iCo-007. Any statement describing Isis’ goals, expectations, financial or other projections, intentions or beliefs is a forward-looking statement and should be considered an at-risk statement, including those statements that are described as Isis’ goals. Such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, particularly those inherent in the process of discovering, developing and commercializing drugs that are safe and effective for use as human therapeutics, and in the endeavor of building a business around such products. Isis’ forward-looking statements also involve assumptions that, if they never materialize or prove correct, could cause its results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward- looking statements. Although Isis’ forward-looking statements reflect the good faith judgment of its management, these statements are based only on facts and factors currently known by Isis. As a result, you are cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. These and other risks concerning Isis’ programs are described in additional detail in Isis’ annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2006, and its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2007, which are on file with the SEC. Copies of these and other documents are available from the Company.
In this press release, unless the context requires otherwise, “Isis,” “Company,” “we,” “our,” and “us” means Isis Pharmaceuticals and its subsidiaries.
Isis Pharmaceuticals, Ibis Biosciences and Ibis T5000 are registered trademarks or trademarks of Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
]]>Designed and discovered by ISIS Pharmaceuticals, iCo-007 is a second-generation antisense inhibitor targeting c-Raf kinase mRNA for the treatment of Diabetic Macular Edema (DME) and Diabetic Retinopathy. iCo licensed the worldwide exclusive rights to all therapeutic applications of iCo-007 from ISIS in 2005.
“The invitation to such an influential conference is not only a validation of iCo-007 and its clinical progress, but shows the value of a key opinion leader group and CMO with expertise in ophthalmology”, said Andrew Rae, iCo’s President & CEO.
About iCo-007
iCo-007 is expected to decrease swelling in the retina and related visual impairment by decreasing the signaling of multiple growth factors, including VEGF, IGF, bFGF, EPO and HGF that signal through the c-Raf kinase / MAP kinase pathway. iCo-007 is currently in a open label, dose escalating Phase I clinical trial in DME patients. The primary endpoint of the trial is safety, with visual acuity and measures of retinal thickness serving as secondary endpoints.
iCo-007 may also be a potential treatment for certain oncology indications, as c-Raf kinase is the predominant Raf isoform responsible for regulating cellular growth in ovarian cancer.
About Diabetic Macular Edema
There are currently no approved therapeutics for DME, the leading cause of blindness in working age adults. DME currently affects about 1.6 million people in the U.S. alone, a number that is expected to grow as Diabetes is forecast to increase by almost 50% in the US by 2025.
Research studies conducted by Dr. Kishor M. Wasan’s laboratory at UBC continue to indicate that orally-administered iCo-009 reaches therapeutic levels in the bloodstream and exhibits dramatic knock-down of fungal infection with reduced or no kidney toxicity in animal models.
iCo plans to develop iCo-009 under the 505(b)(2) section of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which expressly permits the FDA to reference safety data not developed by the applicant for approval of a New Drug Application (NDA). According to the FDA, this approach is “intended to encourage innovation without creating duplicate work” and reflects the principle that “it is wasteful and unnecessary to carry out studies to demonstrate what is already known about a drug”. This approach can potentially reduce the development time and expense for approval of a drug such as iCo-009, which is based upon a drug with a 50-year history.
Dr. Wasan recently published an article in Nature Reviews Drug Discovery (Wasan, KM. et al. “Impact of lipoproteins on the biological activity and disposition of hydrophobic drugs: implications for drug discovery” published in the January 2008 Issue with a feature on the cover page). Dr. Wasan’s article further identifies the need for a novel formulation of AmpB and demonstrates his laboratory’s leadership in developing a formulation that seems to be safe, can be stored in a more stable form and be taken orally, greatly increasing the accessibility of AmpB treatment.
“We are thrilled to be working with a scientist of Dr. Wasan’s caliber and the results coming out of his laboratory continue to excite us,” stated Andrew Rae, President & CEO of iCo Therapeutics. “The opportunity to reprofile an existing drug into a more accessible and efficacious formulation is precisely what we are hoping to achieve with iCo’s business model.”
Dr. Wasan is Professor and Chair of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics, a Distinguished University Scholar at UBC, and Canadian Institutes of Health Research University-Industry Research Chair in Drug Development in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences.
About Fungal Infections & Leishmaniasis
It has been estimated that fungal infections may account for up to 30% of deaths in immunocompromised individuals, particularly those patients with cancer, AIDS, diabetes, and organ transplant recipients. Amphotericin B remains one of the most effective agents in the treatment of systemic fungal infections. In the developing world, AmpB is also an effective weapon against Leishmaniasis, a parasite contracted by approximately 2 million people a year, with 12 million presently infected worldwide. If left untreated, Visceral Leishmaniasis can have a fatality rate as high as 100% within two years (World Health Organization). iCo is committed to UBC’s global access objectives, which include broadening the societal impact of, and global access to, UBC technologies.
The Arrangement constitutes Beanstalk’s “Qualifying Transaction” as a TSX-V capital pool company. Under the Arrangement, iCo has amalgamated with Beanstalk Subsidiary and all of the issued and outstanding securities of iCo, including options and warrants, have been taken up by Beanstalk and paid for by the issuance of equivalent Beanstalk securities on a one-for-one basis. The amalgamated company, which will be known as iCology Corporation, will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of Beanstalk. The common shares of Beanstalk, which will be renamed iCo Therapeutics Inc., are expected to commence trading on the TSX-V under the stock symbol “ICO” on January 7, 2007.
iCo is an emerging biotechnology company focused on the identification, development and commercialization of drug candidates that treat sight and life threatening diseases through a development-only business model. iCo’s strategy is to in-license drug candidates that have clinical or pre-clinical history and compelling evidence of scientific, clinical and commercial potential in ocular and other disease indications.
iCo has entered into license agreements for the exclusive world-wide right to develop and, upon regulatory approval, market two product candidates (iCo-007 and iCo-008) that iCo believes have the potential to treat sight threatening and life threatening conditions. iCo has an option to enter into a license agreement for the exclusive world-wide right to develop and, upon regulatory approval, market a third product candidate (iCo-009) that iCo believes has the potential to treat ocular and systemic fungal diseases.
THIS PRESS RELEASE IS NOT AN OFFER OF SECURITIES FOR SALE OR A SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY SECURITIES IN ANY JURISDICTION. THE COMPANY’S SHARES HAVE NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED, AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD IN THE UNITED STATES OR TO PERSONS IN THE UNITED STATES ABSENT REGISTRATION OR AN APPLICABLE EXEMPTION FROM THE REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS.
For further information, contact:
John Meekison, CFO
Telephone: (604) 602 -9414