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HepaLife Enters into Exclusive License Agreement for Development of New Flu Vaccines



    HepaLife Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB:HPLF):

    -- Worldwide License Agreement Supported by 5 Issued Patents for
    the Development of New Flu Vaccines to Protect against the
    Spread of Influenza Viruses among Humans, Including
    Potentially the High Pathogenicity H5N1 Virus

    As part of its effort to expand its cell-based research and
    development activities, HepaLife Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB:HPLF)
    (FWB:HL1) (WKN:500625), through a wholly owned subsidiary, today
    announced that it has entered into an exclusive worldwide license
    agreement with Michigan State University (MSU) for the development of
    new cell-culture-based flu vaccines to protect against the spread of
    influenza viruses among humans, including potentially the high
    pathogenicity H5N1 virus.
    The license agreement gives HepaLife exclusive rights to five
    issued patents, including US patent 5,989,805 ("Immortal Avian Cell
    Line To Grow Avian and Animal Viruses To Produce Vaccines"), US patent
    5,827,738, US patent 5,833,980, US patent 5,866,117 and US patent
    5,874,303. Under the terms of the agreement, HepaLife agreed to pay
    MSU undisclosed milestone payments and royalty payments based on
    future sales.
    "As evidenced by the recent deaths in Indonesia, which appeared to
    be the first example of the highly virulent avian flu transferring
    from one human to another, the threat of the avian flu mutating into a
    strain that could cause a pandemic is very real," states Mr. Harmel S.
    Rayat, President and CEO of HepaLife Technologies. "Since last summer,
    the lethal avian influenza virus has migrated out of southeast Asia
    into Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Because of trade, smuggling
    and migratory birds, all potential conduits for the H5N1 virus, many
    experts feel it's just a matter of time before it arrives in North and
    South America."
    These recent events have highlighted problems with traditional
    influenza vaccine production methods, particularly the length of time
    to produce a new vaccine and the amount of vaccine that can be
    produced on short notice.
    A successful cell-culture-based avian flu vaccine has the
    potential to reduce production time compared to traditional vaccine
    production methods and should allow rapid expansion of vaccine
    production in the face of a pandemic. Traditional production methods
    use embryonated hens' eggs, which requires extensive planning for the
    millions of eggs necessary in the case of exponentially increasing
    demand. Additionally, risks associated with impurities in eggs
    (antibiotics and other viruses), which may cause sterility problems,
    and allergies against egg albumin, could be avoided.
    Current vaccine production, which is based on decades-old
    technology, involves injecting a small amount of a targeted virus into
    fertilized chicken eggs, where the virus multiplies. After the virus
    is harvested from the eggs, chemicals inactivate and purify the virus,
    which is then blended into a vaccine and bottled in vials. This
    production method takes at least six months.
    In the event of a flu pandemic, it is unlikely that current
    egg-based vaccines will be produced fast enough to meet expected
    demand due to the lengthy production time. Additionally, vaccines go
    stale quickly, and small changes in a virus's makeup can render them
    useless. Transferring production to a cell-culture-based system will
    avoid many of these problems and reduce lot to lot variation in
    vaccine efficacy and potency.

    About Avian Flu

    The H5N1 strain of avian flu can be transmitted from birds to
    humans. From 2003 to June 6, 2006, the World Health Organization has
    confirmed 225 human cases, including 128 deaths. There is currently no
    vaccine available to protect humans from H5N1.
    The Centers for Disease Control states, "There is little
    pre-existing natural immunity to H5N1 infection in the human
    population. If these H5N1 viruses gain the ability for efficient and
    sustained transmission among humans, an influenza pandemic could
    result, with potentially high rates of illness and death." In May, the
    White House issued a report saying that a disease outbreak could lead
    to the deaths of 200,000 to 2 million in the US alone.

    About HepaLife Technologies, Inc.

    HepaLife Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB:HPLF) (FWB:HL1) (WKN:500625) is
    a development-stage biotechnology company focused on the
    identification, development and eventual commercialization of
    cell-based technologies and products.
    Current cell-based technologies under development by HepaLife
    include 1) the first-of-its-kind artificial liver device, 2)
    proprietary in-vitro toxicology and pre-clinical drug testing
    platforms, and 3) cell-culture-based vaccines to protect against the
    spread of influenza viruses among humans, including potentially the
    high pathogenicity H5N1 virus.

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