22nd Century Launches Major New Initiative to Produce Medically-Important Marijuana Cannabinoids
May 12 2016 - 08:49AM
Business Wire
22nd Century is only U.S. firm able to
operate freely in the cannabinoid biosynthetic pathway; Company
intends to produce cost-effective commercial quantities of
cannabinoids
22nd Century Group, Inc. (NYSE MKT: XXII), a plant
biotechnology company that is a leader in tobacco harm reduction
and cannabis research, announced today that it is launching a major
new initiative to produce medically important cannabinoids in
plants other than cannabis – including tobacco plants.
In support of this initiative, the Company also announced that
has opened its own fully-outfitted molecular biology laboratories
in the Cleveland BioLabs building on the Buffalo Niagara Medical
Campus. 22nd Century’s new laboratories will host cutting-edge
research in industrial hemp/cannabis and tobacco biotechnology.
Paul J. Rushton, Ph.D., the Company’s recently appointed Cambridge
and Max Planck Institute-educated Vice President of Plant
Biotechnology, will manage the Company’s research efforts at the
new laboratories.
Under a worldwide license agreement with Anandia Laboratories
Inc. (Anandia), 22nd Century enjoys exclusive rights in the U.S. to
genes required for cannabinoid production in the cannabis plant.
The proprietary technology facilitates the modification of
cannabinoid levels in cannabis, providing 22nd Century Group an
exclusive competitive advantage in the burgeoning area of cannabis
biotechnology. In brief, the proprietary technology provides the
Company with tools to increase or decrease the production and
content of all or certain subsets of cannabinoids in the cannabis
plant.
Building on the Company’s licensed technology and sponsored
research with Anandia, and utilizing proprietary “transcription
factor” technology that the Company purchased for $1.8 million from
the National Research Council of Canada, 22nd Century is pursuing
multiple new research projects, including a novel new initiative to
produce specific, medically-important cannabinoids in tobacco
plants. The Company believes that this tobacco-based approach could
“leap-frog” existing cannabis biotechnology and yield commercial
medical products far more rapidly.
Using tobacco as a “bio-factory” to produce cannabinoids is an
approach that only 22nd Century can pursue since the Company is in
the unique position of having vast experience with manipulating
tobacco and is also the only company in the United States with
complete freedom to operate in the cannabinoid biosynthetic
pathway. Through this innovative research, the Company intends to
cost-effectively produce commercial quantities of marijuana
cannabinoids – including CBD and CBC – that show great promise in
treating neurological disorders and other diseases.
Dr. Rushton explained, “Because cannabis is still not legal at
the federal level in the United States, 22nd Century is launching
this bold new initiative in order to isolate and produce
cannabinoids independent of the cannabis plant; this is not
possible for any other company. Our new laboratories will provide
22nd Century with the in-house capability to develop important new
enabling technologies and gene discovery in both tobacco and
cannabis that could revolutionize both the medical marijuana and
smoking cessation industries.”
“We are pursuing a broad strategy to make 22nd Century the world
leader in cannabis biotechnology,” explained Henry Sicignano, III,
President and Chief Executive Officer at 22nd Century Group. “Our
Company-operated laboratories will enable us to own, outright, the
scientific discoveries, intellectual property and patents that we
develop through our research efforts. In addition, we are planning
an expansion of our sponsored and collaborative research with our
strategic partner, Anandia Laboratories in Vancouver, Canada, and
with other University partners in the United States. This
diversification of our efforts will enable us to legally conduct a
full spectrum of industry-leading cannabis research.”
About 22nd Century Group, Inc.
22nd Century is a plant biotechnology company focused on
technology which allows it to increase or decrease the level of
nicotine in tobacco plants and the level of cannabinoids in
cannabis plants through genetic engineering and plant breeding. The
Company’s primary mission is to reduce the harm caused by smoking.
22nd Century currently owns or exclusively controls more than 200
issued patents and more than 50 pending patent applications around
the world. Visit www.xxiicentury.com for more information.
About Anandia Laboratories Inc.
Anandia Laboratories Inc. is a plant biotechnology company
focused on developing the next generation of cannabis-based
products through a combination of genomics, plant breeding and
pharmaceutical science. Anandia aims to build a strong scientific
foundation for the therapeutic use of cannabis while staying true
to its status as a natural medicine. Anandia will develop and apply
new analytical technologies to support the cannabis industry in
Canada; create designer cannabis strains; and develop non-smoked
cannabis formulations. Anandia aims to be a global leader in
creating transformational health and consumer products derived from
cannabis.
About Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus
The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC) is a consortium of the
region's premier health care, life sciences research, and medical
education institutions, located on 120 acres in downtown Buffalo,
New York. The BNMC is dedicated to the cultivation of a world-class
medical campus for clinical care, research, education, and
entrepreneurship. For more information, visit: www.bnmc.org
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: This press
release contains forward-looking information, including all
statements that are not statements of historical fact regarding the
intent, belief or current expectations of 22nd Century Group, Inc.,
its directors or its officers with respect to the contents of this
press release, including but not limited to our future revenue
expectations. The words “may,” “would,” “will,” “expect,”
“estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “intend” and similar
expressions and variations thereof are intended to identify
forward-looking statements. We cannot guarantee future results,
levels of activity or performance. You should not place undue
reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as
of the date that they were made. These cautionary statements should
be considered with any written or oral forward-looking statements
that we may issue in the future. Except as required by applicable
law, including the securities laws of the United States, we do not
intend to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform
these statements to reflect actual results, later events or
circumstances, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated
events. You should carefully review and consider the various
disclosures made by us in our annual report on Form 10-K for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, filed on February 18, 2016,
including the section entitled “Risk Factors,” and our other
reports filed with the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission which
attempt to advise interested parties of the risks and factors that
may affect our business, financial condition, results of operation
and cash flows. If one or more of these risks or uncertainties
materialize, or if the underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our
actual results may vary materially from those expected or
projected.
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Investor Relations:IRTH CommunicationsAndrew Haag,
866-976-4784xxii@irthcommunications.comorRedington, Inc.Tom
Redington, 203-222-7399
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