Bioniche Chief Veterinary Scientific Officer Discusses Vaccine Against E. coli O157 at International Meat Industry Conference

- Bioniche has the world's first commercially available cattle vaccine
against an Enterohaemorraghic E. coli (EHEC) -

BELLEVILLE, ON, June 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ - Bioniche Life Sciences Inc. (TSX: BNC) (ASX: BNC), a research-based, technology-driven Canadian biopharmaceutical company, today announced that its Chief Veterinary Scientific Officer, Dr. Dragan Rogan, was an invited speaker at the 56^th International Meat Industry Conference being held in Tara, Serbia.

Dr. Rogan's presentation was entitled, "Pre-slaughter intervention by vaccination of cattle - new approach to reduce risk of meat contamination by foodborne pathogens, and consequently reduce incidence of human disease and economic burden". He described E. coli O157, the central role of cattle in disseminating E. coli O157 in meat, produce, water and the environment, and the rationale for the development and implementation of an efficacious pre-harvest vaccination strategy using a fully licensed vaccine (Econiche^TM). He highlighted that an on-farm vaccination strategy is one of the best methods to reduce the prevalence of E. coli O157 both within its primary host - cattle - and in the general environment.

E. coli O157 is an Enterohaemorrhagic E. coli or EHEC. EHEC strains consist of a subset of E. coli that have acquired virulence factors and are pathogenic to humans. These are shiga toxin-producing E. coli that can cause haemorrhagic colitis (HC) and haemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) in humans.

Econiche^TM has the potential to significantly reduce the amount of E. coli O157 shed into the environment by beef and dairy cattle. E. coli O157 does not cause illness in cattle, but cattle are the primary reservoir for it. Vaccination of cattle with Econiche^TM can help reduce the risk of food and waterborne contamination with E. coli O157. The Company has been actively exploring opportunities to introduce Econiche^TM to markets beyond North America, where it has a full license in Canada and a pending conditional license in the U.S.

There is a significant amount of international attention currently refocusing on the danger presented by EHEC. A new strain - O104:H4 - was identified as the causative organism of a massive outbreak in Germany in recent weeks that sickened more than 3,000 people and caused 35 deaths. "Although the Bioniche vaccine targets the O157 serotype of E. coli, other serotypes causing human infection appear to have similar attachment mechanisms to O157, and Bioniche believes that Econiche^TM may provide cross-protection against other serotypes," said Dr. Dragan Rogan, Chief Veterinary Scientific Officer at Bioniche Life Sciences Inc. "Researchers at Bioniche are currently working to confirm the extent to which such cross-protection may exist."

Bioniche, in collaboration with Dr. Brett Finlay, University of British Columbia, and the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization developed and fully licensed Econiche™ for use in healthy cattle. The vaccine has been shown to reduce the shedding of E. coli O157 in cattle. The vaccine targets the type III secretory system (TTSS), which is essential for E. coli O157 attachment in the recto anal junction of cattle.

Controlled challenge studies demonstrate that vaccinating cattle with Econiche™ results in:

1. 99.5% reduction in the number of bacteria shed in feces;
2. 71% reduction in the proportion of animals shedding;
3. 64% reduction in duration of shedding; and
4. Reduction in the number of days that bacteria are shed in feces.

Econiche^TM will be manufactured in the Company's newly completed Animal Health and Food Safety Vaccine Manufacturing Centre in Belleville, Ontario, currently undergoing validation and commissioning. Full production in the new Centre is expected to begin by the fall of 2011.

About the 56^th International Meat Industry Conference

The 56th International Meat Industry Conference was organized by the Institute of meat Hygiene and Technology, Belgrade. Its focus is meat and meat products - safety, culture, development and quality of life. Conditions in primary production, biotechnology in primary production and meat processing, transport of animals and slaughtering, meat processing, sale of meat and meat products, the customer role in meat and meat products safety as well as safety and quality of meat and meat products are being addressed.

More About E. coli O157

The E. coli O157 organism causes no disease in cattle, but cattle are the primary reservoir for it. E. coli O157 can cause severe illness and can even be fatal when ingested by humans from contaminated meat, vegetables, other food products, or water. Human exposure and infection with E. coli O157 can result in serious health consequences, including abdominal pain and severe bloody diarrhea. In severe cases, kidney damage can occur and progress to serious complications and even death. Lingering, long-term medical conditions can persist in individuals exposed to the bacterium. These include post-infectious irritable bowel syndrome (PI-IBS), reduced kidney function, diabetes, hypertension and reactive arthritis.

An estimated 100,000 cases of human infection with the E. coli O157 organism are reported each year in North America. Two to seven per cent of those people develop haemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a disease characterized by kidney failure. Five percent of HUS patients die, many of them children and senior citizens, whose kidneys are more sensitive to damage. In the recent German outbreak, twenty-five percent developed HUS. Officials consider this outbreak to be the third-largest involving E. coli in recent world history, and it is the deadliest. Twelve people died in a 1996 Japanese outbreak that reportedly made more than 9,000 people sick, and seven died in the Walkerton, Ontario, tainted water outbreak in 2000.

Beyond the German outbreak, there have been a number of other recent outbreaks associated with EHEC strains. U.S. outbreaks of E. coli O157 in Oklahoma, Tennessee, Virginia, Louisiana and Texas have caused 30 illnesses and one death. Another O157 outbreak in Bristol, UK caused 23 illnesses. An outbreak associated with E. coli O111 made more than 20 people ill.

About Bioniche Life Sciences Inc.

Bioniche Life Sciences Inc. is a research-based, technology-driven Canadian biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development, manufacturing, and marketing of proprietary products for human and animal health markets worldwide. The fully-integrated company employs more than 200 skilled personnel and has three operating divisions: Human Health, Animal Health, and Food Safety. The Company's primary goal is to develop proprietary cancer therapies supported by revenues from marketed products in human and animal health. The Company was named one of the Top 50 Small and Medium-Sized Employers in Canada for 2010, based on employee opinion. For more information, please visit www.Bioniche.com.

Except for historical information, this news release may contain forward-looking statements that reflect the Company's current expectation regarding future events. These forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainties, which may cause, but are not limited to, changing market conditions, the successful and timely completion of clinical studies, the establishment of corporate alliances, the impact of competitive products and pricing, new product development, uncertainties related to the regulatory approval process, and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's ongoing quarterly and annual reporting.

SOURCE Bioniche Life Sciences Inc.