Agienic issued three key U.S. patents for novel copper-based antimicrobial materials

Agienic Inc., an Arizona-based innovator in antimicrobial technology, announced today the issuance of three key U.S. patents on their novel copper-based antimicrobial materials.

These materials provide unprecedented antimicrobial activity at low cost. These materials - safe for humans and the environment - are markedly more effective than products now marketed to combat bacteria (Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Pseudomonas, Salmonella, Mycobacteria and E. coli), viruses, molds and yeasts.

Not only do Agienic's materials exhibit outstanding effectiveness against a broad range of microbes, but they can also be tailored for incorporation in nearly any matrix material, whether solid or liquid.

Agienic expects commercialization of its exclusive materials will include applications from hospitals to cosmetics and personal-hygiene products, as well as the petroleum and natural-gas industry. The current market for antimicrobial products exceeds $10B/year at wholesale.

Issuance of these patents protects Agienic's breakthrough technology, which can be used to create self-disinfecting surfaces - i.e., surfaces that can kill microbes that come in contact with the surfaces weeks or even months after the surfaces are treated.

Used in coatings, Agienic's materials offer the promise of reducing the spread of infectious microbes in hospitals and in the community.

Agienic's materials can also provide extraordinary antimicrobial protection in wound care, are effective against the fungi responsible for dandruff and nail infections, and can also provide odor control in textiles and deodorants.

Dr. Anoop Agrawal, Agienic's V.P of Technology, commented: "These patents not only protect our core antimicrobial technology, they also protect key additives that permit the efficient manufacture of our materials using an environmentally-friendly process."

Dr. Kelly Bright, an environmental microbiologist from the University of Arizona, reflected that, "the effectiveness of these antimicrobial materials against a wide range of microorganisms allows for their use in a variety of commercial applications."

Agienic CEO Dr. Donald Uhlmann, former Cabot Professor of Materials at MIT, noted: "Agienic's materials, now patent-protected, not only provide unprecedented protection against multi-drug-resistant microbes that plague our society, they are also highly effective against the anaerobic bacteria that routinely degrade equipment in oil and gas production."