VNTA Ventana Biotech Inc (PK)

Ventana Biotech Inc ("Ventana")(PINK SHEETS: VNTA), a biotechnology company that is developing a appetite-suppressing chewing gum, today released detailed information about its innovative Anti-Obesity Chewing Gum.

The goal of Ventana's Anti-Obesity Chewing Gum is to combat the growing global obesity epidemic while capturing a share of the multi-billion dollar market for anti-obesity drugs.

How it works

Ventana's proprietary chewing gum contains an extract of hoodia gordonii and 2-hydroxyoleic acid. Hoodia gordonii is a leafless, cactus-like plant that grows naturally in Southern Africa that was historically used by native populations to suppress appetite when making long hunting trips in the Kalahari Desert. The plant has also been found to possess the ability to lower blood glucose levels, thereby also making it an attractive candidate for the treatment and prevention of diabetes.

The active ingredients in the plant extracts are released into the patient's blood stream, and trigger a hormonal response in the part of the brain (the hypothalamus) that tells the body it is "full", thereby suppressing the appetite of the obese patient. Because the plant extracts activate hormones that naturally exist in the body, there are no harmful side effects.

The simple logic is that the Anti-Obesity Chewing Gum eliminates the feeling of "hunger", which in turn leads the patient to ingest less food, which in turn leads to weight loss.

Obesity is a growing problem in developed nations, and is associated with increased mortality, Type 2 Diabetes, and heart disease.

With Ventana's proprietary Anti-Obesity Chewing Gum, users can safely control their appetites. Early indications show the Gum is able to reduce appetite by between 15 and 25 percent. Ventana continues to perfect this promising biotechnology and plans to eventually out-license it to Big Pharma companies. The royalty cash-flow from a successful anti-obesity drug is estimated at 1.5 - 1.7 billion Dollars.

The outlook for anti-obesity treatments such as that of Ventana's is promising, as the anti-obesity market continues to grow, while concurrently, the availability of successful patents is lacking. Morgan Stanley estimates the market for drugs combating Type 2 Diabetes (strongly correlated to obesity) to be in excess of $35 billion by 2012.

About Ventana Biotech Inc

Ventana is positioning itself as the leading bioscience company in the development and commercial licensure of novel therapeutic anti-obesity drug treatment. The company leverages cutting-edge research collaborations to achieve breakthroughs in innovative anti-obesity treatments, and then licenses these patented drug product candidates to Big Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology companies.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:

Statements about Ventana's future expectations and all other statements in this press release other than historical facts are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and as the term is defined in the Private Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Ventana's actual results could differ materially from expected results. Ventana does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequently occurring events or circumstances. Should events occur which materially affect any comments made within this objective; Ventana will appropriately inform the public.

For more information about Ventana Biotech Inc please contact investor@ventanabiotech.com

Contacts: Ventana Biotech Inc Janne Christensen CEO + 41 44 732 6059 investor@ventanabiotech.com