Nano for Medicine: Biophan Receives Patent Rights Enabling MRI-Guided Surgery

Biophan Technologies, Inc., a leading developer of next-generation biomedical technology, announced today that a broad U.S. Patent has been issued to Nanoset, LLC, Biophan's technology partner with Biophan holding the worldwide exclusive rights for all medical applications. The announcement was made by Michael Weiner, Biophan's president and CEO.

The Company noted that the nanomagnetic particle coating technology can illuminate devices that are currently difficult to see, either because they are invisible to MRI or because the devices occlude the MRI image. Combined with Biophan's safety solutions, the patented technology is expected to help pave the way to allowing MRI-guided surgical procedures, including minimally invasive procedures such as those used for placing stents, performing RF ablation, angiograms, biopsy probes, and many other procedures.

"Biophan's mission of creating a world-class biomedical patent portfolio is further supported by the addition of these patent rights to our burgeoning portfolio," stated Mr. Weiner. "It provides further evidence of our clear leadership position in developing technologies that make medical devices, such as pacemakers and guidewires, safe for use with MRI. The potential impact of MRI-guided surgery is far reaching and we are pleased to be on the forefront of this revolution."

Mr. Weiner continued, "It is clear that we are meeting our publicly stated objective for further innovation and market expansion. We are pleased to add these patents to our proprietary technology base."

Mr. Weiner went on to note, "Today, most interventional procedures are done under CT scan or fluoroscopy, exposing the patient and physician to ionizing radiation, and providing a less than optimal image of tissue, organs, and vessels. This is done in part because of the problems that have been associated with MRI safety and image problems associated with many medical devices. The significance of this patent is that it teaches how a coating on the device can change the MRI image, reducing the artifacts, and making the invisible devices, such as certain catheters, visible."

Mr. Weiner concluded, "Possibly what is of greatest commercial significance is our expanded dialog with the MRI manufacturers and medical device manufacturers as both groups benefit from seeing this transition to the MRI-guided surgical center. We have found considerable interest and support in seeing these capabilities reach the market. We have previously indicated that we are in discussions with biomedical device companies, with some of these discussions in advanced stages of negotiation. This patent is an important component of the evolving industry interest."

U.S. Patent No. 6,765,144 was issued to Nanoset, LLC, a technology supplier to Biophan, with Biophan holding the worldwide exclusive rights to all medical applications. Biophan and Nanoset worked jointly on the innovation, based on earlier nanotechnology patents developed by Nanoset. A copy of the patent can be viewed on the Company's website at www.biophan.com/intellectual.php.

Source: Biophan Technologies, Inc