QBI Life Sciences: Selects Takara Bio to distribute Tools for Membrane Proteins in Japan, China and Korea

Contact: Ralph Kauten

(608) 441-2950                                                                                                                                                                                      [email protected]

            MADISON, WISCONSIN, USA— QBI Life Sciences, a unit of Quintessence Biosciences, Inc., has signed an agreement to begin distributing its Tools for Membrane Proteins in Japan, China and Korea through Takara Bio Inc. (Takara Bio), a prestigious leader in the global biotechnology market.

Leading the QBI Life Sciences line of Tools for Membrane Proteins is PreserveX™ Polymeric Micelles.  This product line offers easy to use methods to extract and solubilize proteins associated with cell membranes from cell and tissue derived fractions.  Membrane proteins are important targets for drug discovery as most current drugs work by binding to proteins associated with membranes. However, purification and solubilization of membrane proteins often results in protein instability and loss of activity limiting drug discovery and other areas of research.  PreserveX™ Polymeric Micelles aid in the solubilization and stabilization of membrane proteins allowing for research not previously possible.

“Takara Bio has a history of being a good and strong partner in the worldwide biotechnology community,” stated Ralph Kauten, President of Quintessence Biosciences.  “Putting QBI Life Sciences tools for membrane proteins into the sales distribution network of Takara Bio will further extend Takara Bio’s franchise in the field of proteomic research and will vastly extend the availability of important membrane protein tools for life science research.”

About Takara Bio Inc.

 Takara Bio Inc., a long time leading company in the Japanese life science market, first introduced biotechnology products in 1979 and was the first to develop and introduce PCR related products in Japan. The company’s revenues in the research reagent business worldwide were ¥11.8 billion JPY for fiscal 2004.

About QBI Life Sciences

QBI Life Sciences is a division of Quintessence Biosciences, Inc.  QBI Life Sciences is focused on development and supply of research tools with a focus on tools for membrane proteins.  The aim of the Company’s product development efforts is to enable new areas of research. 

For more information go to http://www.takara-bio.com and http://www.qbilifesci.com.

Statements made in this document with respect to Takara Bio’s current plans, estimates, strategies and beliefs and other statements that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements about the future performance of Takara Bio. These statements are based on the judgment of the management in light of the information currently available to it, and also based on various assumptions and views as a result of that information that contain significant risks and uncertainties. Please note that actual results may differ materially from these projections. Factors that may affect actual results include but are not limited to, changes in economic conditions, especially those in consumption trends, exchange rate fluctuations, regulatory and administrative changes, competitive pressure in pricing and product strategies, decline in our ability to sell existing and new products, production interruption, infringement of our intellectual property rights, radical technological innovations, and adverse judgments in significant lawsuits.