Atlantic BioPharmaceuticals, Inc.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 19, 1997
Roger Lederer
530-898-6121
Atlantic BioPharmaceuticals, Inc.
CHICO, CA - Atlantic BioPharmaceuticals, Inc. (ABI), a start-up biotech company, will be relocating in Chico to produce medically useful chemical products through genetic engineering. Chico State has taken an active role in recruiting ABI to Chico. In the first two years, the company will be doing basic research in facilities in Holt Hall, on the Chico State campus. After that, ABI will be moving to a permanent site off campus. ABI was attracted to Chico because of the beauty of the region, the cultural advantages offered by the University, the chance to work with university faculty, and some familiarity with Chico residents.
ABI is a biotechnology company developing treatments for autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and breast and prostate cancers based upon technology and patents licensed from McGill University in Vancouver, Canada and developed by Dr. Robert Murgita, ABI’s chief scientific officer, while he was professor for and later chair of the Department Microbiology and Immunology at McGill.
Dr. Murgita, the creator of the company’s patented process for the production of alphafetoprotein, expects to develop new and novel pharmaceuticals for production by ABI at its planned Chico facilities and to continue research in conjuntion with faculty and students at CSU, Chico, as well as in collaboration with other academic institutions. Murgita and ABI’s Chief Operations Officer Robert A. Grant expressed their delight with the warm reception from CSU, Chico, the City of Chico, and community leaders, emphasizing that, “The cooperative atmoshpere of the city, university, and community has made the decision to relocate to Chico irresistible.”
The affiliation of Atlantic BioPharmaceuticals, Inc. with CSU, Chico and its Department of Biological Sciences and with the City of Chico should prove to be a productive, exciting relationship for all. ABI is exactly the kind of company the University wants to bring to the community and, as such, pledges to work cooperatively with the city and county to do so.
Atlantic BioPharmaceuticals, Inc., in conjunction with Chico State’s President Manuel A. Esteban, Provost Scott G. McNall, and Dean Roger Lederer, will hold an open press conference at 11:15 a.m., Wednesday, August 20, in the main dining room of Selvester’s Cafe by the Creek on the Chico State campus. Members of the media and community are invited to attend.
For more information, call Roger Lederer, dean of the College of Natural Sciences, CSU, Chico, 898-6121.
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