LOS ANGELES, Nov. 22, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- PRB Pharmaceuticals issues a statement correcting a November 11, 2005 report by David Goldstein of KCBS news. The segment was entitled "Bird Flu Medications: Will they Work?" In the segment, Mr. Goldstein reported statements made by USC concerning its involvement with PRB Pharmaceuticals and VIRA 38 even, though KCBS was in possession of evidence to the contrary. In his broadcast, Mr. Goldstein completely disregarded the information and reported the following statement: "USC has not had any involvement with the research, development, testing or review of VIRA 38..."
"I am not surprised at the irresponsible behavior of Mr. Goldstein and KCBS but I am quite disappointed with the USC administration. Why they decided to disregard their involvement with PRB Pharmaceuticals is unknown. Even in the face of pressures exerted from outside funding sources and large influential pharmaceutical companies, USC still has an obligation to disseminate accurate information," said Dr. Charles Hensley, Chairman and CEO of PRB Pharmaceuticals.
Several days before the segment aired, Mr. Goldstein received and reviewed irrefutable proof of USC'S involvement with PRB Pharmaceuticals and VIRA 38. This included a letter dated May 12, 2003 from Melvin Trousdale, Ph.D. Professor of Research at the Doheny Eye Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California in which Dr. Trousdale confirms his collaboration with PRB Pharmaceuticals. The letter specifically states that Dr. Trousdale was currently testing PRB Pharmaceuticals influenza and SARS product fractions in his laboratory.
PRB Pharmaceuticals also provided KCBS documentation showing that Dr. Michael Lai, a prominent virologist and professor at USC, served as member of PRB Pharmaceuticals scientific advisory board from 2003 until October 2005. Furthermore, Mr. Goldstein received a letter from USC amending their earlier statements and admitting their involvement in PRB Pharmaceuticals research. The KCBS broadcast and Goldstein fraudulently ignored the supplied documents. In fact, Mr. Goldstein never contacted Melvin Trousdale and still elected to broadcast the earlier statements from USC.
"The inference that Dr. Michael Lai, Dr. Trousdale and/or USC had no involvement in the research and developmental process of VIRA 38 is totally absurd. We developed and have been testing VIRA 38 over the course of the past four years with a variety of domestic and international institutions, including USC. This was long before bird flu became the hot media topic it is today," said Dr. Hensley. "This is yet another example of sensationalistic journalism designed to boost ratings at the expense of accurate reporting on a very important public health issue," he continued.
About VIRA 38
VIRA 38, PRB Pharmaceuticals' over-the-counter broad-spectrum anti-viral, is known for its ability to dramatically reduce the duration of human influenza illness. VIRA 38 has recently been shown to contain compounds that inhibit bird flu (H5N1) viral infections by blocking the entry of the H5N1 virus into cells. This mechanism is distinct from that of Tamiflu, which inhibits the normal release of the virus from already infected cells. VIRA 38 and its fractions are now being tested against emerging oseltamivir (Tamiflu) resistant H5N1 viruses currently circulating in Vietnam and protocols are underway for human H5N1 clinical trials to be conducted in Thailand.
About PRB Pharmaceuticals
PRB Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (http://www.prbpharmaceuticals.com) is based in California and Hong Kong. PRB Pharmaceuticals is a fully integrated biopharmaceutical company that develops unique and highly efficacious anti-viral treatments and preventative therapies.