PVCT Provectus Biopharmaceuticals Inc (QB)

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM 8-K

 

 

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): May 5, 2015

 

 

PROVECTUS BIOPHARMACEUTICALS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in charter)

 

 

 

Delaware		001-36457		90-0031917
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation)		(Commission File Number)		(IRS Employer Identification No.)

7327 Oak Ridge Hwy., Knoxville, Tennessee 37931

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

(866) 594-5999

(Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code)

 

(Former Name or Former Address, If Changed Since Last Report)

 

 

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

 

¨	Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

 

¨	Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

 

¨	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

 

¨	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

 

 

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Item 7.01.

Regulation FD Disclosure.

On May 5, 2015, Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (the “Company”) issued a press release (the “Press Release”) announcing that the Company received notification of allowance from the European Patent Office for its patent application protecting the synthetic process used to produce the small molecule Rose Bengal, the active pharmaceutical ingredient in PV-10, the Company’s lead oncology drug candidate. The Press Release also announced that the Japanese Patent Office has issued a patent for the same intellectual property. A copy of the Press Release is attached hereto as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.

Pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the information in this Item 7.01 disclosure, including Exhibit 99.1 and information set forth therein, is deemed to have been furnished and shall not be deemed to be “filed” under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

 

Item 9.01.

Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

(d)

Exhibits.

 

Exhibit Number		Description
99.1		Press Release, dated May 5, 2015

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SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

Date: May 5, 2015

 

 

2

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EXHIBIT INDEX

 

Exhibit Number		Description
99.1		Press Release, dated May 5, 2015

Exhibit 99.1

 

 

Contact: Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. Peter R. Culpepper, CFO, COO Phone: 866-594-5999 #30		Porter, LeVay & Rose, Inc. Marlon Nurse, DM, SVP – Investor Relations Phone: 212-564-4700 Bill Gordon – Media Relations Phone: 212-724-6312

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                

PROVECTUS BIOPHARMACEUTICALS’S NOVEL SYNTHESIS PATENT APPLICATION

ALLOWED BY EUROPEAN PATENT OFFICE, PATENT ISSUED BY JAPAN

KNOXVILLE, TN, May 5, 2015 — Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE MKT: PVCT, http://www.pvct.com), a clinical-stage oncology and dermatology biopharmaceutical company (“Provectus” or the “Company”), announced that it has received notification of allowance from the European Patent Office for its patent application protecting the synthetic process used to produce the small molecule Rose Bengal, the active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) in PV-10, the Company’s lead oncology drug candidate. At the same time, the Japanese Patent Office has issued a patent for the same intellectual property.

The pending European patent and issued Japanese patent cover the same process as the one granted by the US Patent Office in September 2013, as U.S. Patent 8,530,675, “Process for the Synthesis of 4,5,6,7-tetrachloro-3’,6’-dihydroxy-2’,4’,5’,7’-tetraiodo-3H-spiro[isobenzofuran-1,9-xanthen]-3-one (Rose Bengal) and Related Xanthenes.” The application details a new process for the manufacture of Rose Bengal and related iodinated xanthenes in high purity. The allowed claims cover the process under which pharmaceutical grade Rose Bengal and related xanthenes are produced, reducing the formation of certain previously unknown transhalogenated impurities that occur in commercial grade Rose Bengal in uncontrolled amounts. The requirement to identify and control related substances is in accordance with International Conference on Harmonisation (ICH) guidelines for manufacture of API suitable for phase 3 clinical trial investigational product and for commercial pharmaceutical use. Once issued, the European patent is expected to provide protection for Rose Bengal API to 2031 and covers any hypothetical process that controls the amount of transhalogenated impurities in Rose Bengal through the awarded Jepson style claims.

Eric Wachter, CTO of Provectus, stated, “The allowance of the European patent and the issuance of its Japanese equivalent further the protection of our novel synthesis process for the manufacture of Rose Bengal. We already are protected in the US market, and the Chinese Patent Office notified us of its allowance in January 2015, safeguarding PV-10 in China.

“With our patient enrollment now open for our phase 3 clinical trial investigating intralesional PV-10 as a potential treatment for melanoma, Provectus is determined to ensure that we maximize shareholder value by building the strongest intellectual property protections into our portfolio as possible. We believe that these patents will further strengthen our Company’s position for not only PV-10 in melanoma, but also its potential value as a treatment for other indications.”

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About Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc.

Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., specializes in developing oncology and dermatology therapies. PV-10, its novel investigational drug for cancer, is designed for injection into solid tumors (intralesional administration), thereby reducing potential for systemic side effects. Its oncology focus is on melanoma, breast cancer and cancers of the liver. The Company has received orphan drug designations from the FDA for its melanoma and hepatocellular carcinoma indications. PH-10, its topical investigational drug for dermatology, is undergoing clinical testing for psoriasis and atopic dermatitis. Provectus has completed phase 2 trials of PV-10 as a therapy for metastatic melanoma, and of PH-10 as a topical treatment for atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. Information about these and the Company’s other clinical trials, including its current phase 3 study in melanoma, can be found at the NIH registry, www.clinicaltrials.gov. For additional information about Provectus, please visit the Company’s website at www.pvct.com or contact Porter, LeVay & Rose, Inc.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS: This release contains “forward-looking statements” as defined under U.S. federal securities laws. These statements reflect management’s current knowledge, assumptions, beliefs, estimates, and expectations and express management’s current views of future performance, results, and trends and may be identified by their use of terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “predict,” “project,” “will,” and other similar terms. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to materially differ from those described in the forward-looking statements. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Such statements are made as of the date hereof, and we undertake no obligation to update such statements after this date.

Risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to materially differ from those described in forward-looking statements include those discussed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (including those described in Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014) and the following:

 

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our determination, based on guidance from the FDA, whether to proceed with or without a partner with the fully enrolled phase 3 trial of PV-10 to treat locally advanced cutaneous melanoma and the costs associated with such a trial if it is necessary to complete (versus interim data alone);

 

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our determination whether to license PV-10, our melanoma drug product candidate, and other solid tumors such as cancers of the liver, if such licensure is appropriate considering the timing and structure of such a license, or to commercialize PV-10 on our own to treat melanoma and other solid tumors such as cancers of the liver;

 

•

our ability to license our dermatology drug product candidate, PH-10, on the basis of our phase 2 atopic dermatitis and psoriasis results, which are in the process of being further developed in conjunction with mechanism of action studies; and

 

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our ability to raise additional capital if we determine to commercialize PV-10 and/or PH-10 on our own, although our expectation is to be acquired by a prospective pharmaceutical or biotech concern prior to commercialization.

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