ExThera Medical Corporation said today that data recently generated by independent laboratories demonstrate that the company's Seraph® Microbind® Affinity Blood Filter has the remarkable ability to remove a very broad range of pathogens and toxins from whole blood.

Data on Seraph, which is designed to be part of a multi-pronged approach to thwarting the epidemic of "nightmare bacteria" (pathogens that have become resistant to even the most potent antibiotics) will be introduced to critical care physicians at the 43rd Critical Care Congress in San Francisco, Jan. 9-13. ExThera Medical will be located at Booth #1019.

"Fortunately, antibiotic resistance does not appear to change the way pathogens bind to the surface of cells during their invasion of the body. We have invented and patented an adsorption/filtration technology able to mimic these binding sites within a single-use device. When infected blood is passed though the Seraph device and returned to the patient, both drug-susceptible and drug-resistant pathogens and their toxins bind to it and are thereby removed from the infected blood," says Robert S. ("Bob") Ward, CEO of ExThera Medical.

"When the source of a patient's bacteria is known and has been eliminated, the use of Seraph, optionally combined with antibiotics, may accelerate the clearance of blood-borne pathogens and toxins to a level that can be handled by the patient's own immune system," Ward said.

Existing treatments of bacteremia, caused by, for example, S. aureus or MRSA (Methicillin-Resistant S. Aureus) rely on antibiotics to kill the bacteria. The Seraph® device capitalizes on the affinity of the bacteria to attach to the surface of the adsorption/filtration media within the disposable device. That surface includes immobilized heparin, a natural anticoagulant that has many other useful biological properties. Seraph® is designed to be a biomimetic adjunct to antibiotic therapy that reduces bacterial load and the duration of bacteremia, thereby potentially preventing complications such as endocarditis, osteomyelitis, and a systemic inflammatory response.

To date, independent laboratories have demonstrated that the following pathogens and toxins are captured by Seraph when blood or serum is passed through the device:

Drug-Resistant Bacteria:
MRSA; CRE - E.coli and K. pneumoniae; ESBL - K. pneumoniae; VRE - E. faecalis.

Viruses, Fungi, and Toxins:
HSV-1, HSV-2; C. albicans; Endotoxin; S. aureus ?-hemolysin.

Gram-Positive Bacteria:
S. aureus; S. pneumoniae; E. faecilis; E. faecium.

Gram-Negative Bacteria:
E.coli; K. pneumoniae; A. baumannii; P. aeruginosa.

About ExThera Medical

Privately held ExThera Medical, based in Berkeley, Calif., is targeting the clinical treatment of blood-borne diseases including bacteremia, as well as the removal of harmful substances present in banked human blood.

CAUTION: ExThera Medical's Seraph® device is not cleared by the FDA for distribution in the United States.

Ronald Trahan Associates Inc.
Ronald C. Trahan, APR, President, +1-508-359-4005, x108