EDMONTON, ALBERTA–(Marketwired – Sept. 21, 2016) – Ceapro Inc. (TSX VENTURE:CZO) (“Ceapro” or the “Company”), a growth-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of active ingredients for healthcare and cosmetic industries, announced today that the German-Canadian Centre for Innovation and Research (“GCCIR”) has made a non-reimbursable grant contribution of $250,000 for the commercialization advancement of Ceapro’s Pressurized Gas eXpanded (PGX) technology. This grant will match Ceapro’s contribution as part of a $1.5 million project involving three German based organizations along with the University of Alberta (U of A) and Ceapro.
The main objective of this project is to further advance PGX Technology and to proactively make PGX a greener process through the integration of an ethanol recycling system to be made possible through the development of unique retention membranes.
While a German Corporation (A. Junghans GmbH) and two prestigious German-based Research Institutes (Fraunhofer) will focus on membranes development, Ceapro and U of A will test and integrate these membranes into the PGX process. Ultimately, this project will lead to the commercialization of the specialized membranes by Junghans and the optimized PGX Technology by Ceapro.
Gilles Gagnon, M.Sc., MBA, President and CEO of Ceapro, stated, “We are thrilled to have entered into this Alberta-German collaboration fund with such highly specialized organizations and are pleased to have received this funding to advance the development of our proprietary PGX Technology. We believe that this membrane optimization project will continue to support the broad utility of our PGX Technology and its ability to enable us to expand our business model into well established and growing industries.”
About Pressurized Gas eXpanded Liquid Technology (PGX)
The Company’s patented Pressurized Gas eXpanded (PGX) is a unique and disruptive technology with several key advantages over conventional drying and purification technologies that can be used to process biopolymers into high-value, nano-sized polymer structures and novel bio-nanocomposites. PGX is ideally suited for processing challenging high-molecular-weight, water-soluble biopolymers. It has the ability to make ultra-light, highly porous polymer structures on a continuous basis, which is not possible using today’s conventional technologies. PGX was invented by Dr. Feral Temelli from the Department of Agricultural, Food & Nutritional Science of the University of Alberta (U of A) along with Dr. Bernhard Seifried, now Senior Researcher at Ceapro. The license from U of A provides Ceapro with exclusive worldwide rights in all industrial applications.
About GCCIR
The German-Canadian Centre for Innovation and Research (GCCIR) is a multilateral initiative for the development of German-Canadian, and more recently, French-Canadian research and business relations. Based in Edmonton, Alberta and located in the TEC Edmonton Business Accelerator, the GCCIR provides support for the exchange of information, development of networks, and the establishment and cultivation of collaborative partnerships in academia, business, and industry. In addition to multiple academic partnerships, the GCCIR works with the Albertan Ministry of Economic Development and Trade to operate the Alberta-Germany Collaboration Fund and the Alberta-France Collaboration Fund, both aimed at facilitating and supporting joint, innovative technology development projects between Albertan and European SMEs.
About Ceapro Inc.
Ceapro Inc. is a Canadian biotechnology company involved in the development of proprietary extraction technology and the application of this technology to the production of extracts and “active ingredients” from oats and other renewable plant resources. Ceapro adds further value to its extracts by supporting their use in cosmeceutical, nutraceutical, and therapeutics products for humans and animals. The Company has a broad range of expertise in natural product chemistry, microbiology, biochemistry, immunology and process engineering. These skills merge in the fields of active ingredients, biopharmaceuticals and drug-delivery solutions. For more information on Ceapro, please visit the Company’s website at www.ceapro.com.
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Source: Ceapro Inc.
Jenene Thomas
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