Situs Licenses Key Technology Patent from University of California at San Diego


SAN DIEGO, Calif., Sept. 22, 1999 (PRIMEZONE) -- Situs Corporation today announced it has reached an agreement with the University of California at San Diego (UCSD) regarding the licensing and co-ownership of a patent for the coating for medical devices.

The agreement gives Situs exclusive rights to the urological applications for the coating while the university retains rights to other applications of the technology.

The patent was developed by Situs co-founders, Paul Zupkas, Ph.D., and Lowell Parsons, M.D., who is a faculty member at the UCSD School of Medicine.

Tate Scott, president and chief executive officer of Situs said, "This agreement enables Situs to utilize this valuable technology in the development of products that may reduce the formation of mineral deposits on certain medical devices, such as catheters and stents, to extend their useful life while achieving a significant cost reduction in one of the highest healthcare expense items, disposable devices."

Alan Paau, Ph.D., director of UCSD Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Services, which manages the campus' intellectual property said, "It was a pleasure to work with Situs. The company's up-front approach and initiative in this matter fostered a cooperative partnership that has legitimized and strengthened the value of this jointly owned patent."

UCSD and the University of California system are widely recognized as sources of important new technology and economic activity. "We want local companies to leverage technology developed at the university for the benefit of the greater San Diego community," Paau emphasized.

Situs Corporation is a developer of alternate drug delivery systems. The company's site-specific drug delivery platform features a proprietary intravesical, or through the bladder approach, which is capable of administering various pharmaceutical compounds for the treatment of local and systemic conditions.

The company's first target indication, overactive bladder, affects an estimated 17 million Americans, more than 30 percent of whom cannot tolerate the side effects of oral medications. Other potential applications of the Situs system include chemotherapeutic agents for bladder cancer, hormones for genitourinary conditions, and analgesics for pain.


            

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