Catylix, Inc. and Aspira Scientific Announce Cooperation to Produce and Distribute Hartwig Trifluoromethylator® Reagent

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Catylix, Inc. (Burbank, California) and Aspira Scientific (Milpitas, California) announced today a cooperation to produce and distribute Catylix's breakthrough reagent for trifluoromethylation. The reagent will be produced and distributed by Aspira under sublicense from Catylix. Trifluoromethylator® reagent is available now in sizes ranging from 1 gram to multi-kilograms. Through their recently announced joint venture the companies are planning for future production of Trifluoromethylator® to meet demand in multi-ton quantities.

Based on the discoveries of Professor John Hartwig, now at the University of California Berkeley, Trifluoromethylator® offers a number of advantages for adding trifluoromethyl groups to aryl, heteroaryl, and vinyl compounds. The reagent is shelf stable, functions at or near ambient temperature, and has unprecedented functional group compatibility. "Trifluoromethylator® is the fastest, easiest way to add a trifluoromethyl group to almost any aryl iodide or bromide. Through this new cooperation with Aspira, the availability of Trifluoromethylator® will be expanded, and we will be working to bring down the cost for large scale applications so that chemists will enjoy the benefits of this reagent from lab scale to commercial scale."

Trifluoromethylation is a frequently used chemical reaction, particularly in the pharmaceutical and crop protection industries. Dr. John Chan, CEO of Aspira commented, "We are delighted to bring Aspira's expertise in distribution and production to make this breakthrough trifluoromethylation reagent more widely available to both researchers and process chemists. As we bring down the cost, we anticipate wider application and significantly increased demand." More information is available on the Aspira web site: http://aspirasci.com/trifluoromethylator.

Dr. David Rozzell, CEO of Catylix, and Dr. John Chan, CEO of Aspira Scientific, will be available for consultations and meetings during the 2014 ACS Meeting and Exhibition in San Francisco on August 11 and 12 at Booth 1136.

About Aspira Scientific
Aspira Scientific is a science-centric enterprise dedicated to empowering scientists reach their aspirations in chemical R&D. We achieve this goal through reducing the cost of basic and applied research by offering research products with superior value in terms of price and quality. By leveraging a truly global innovation ecosystem, we also make available a broader set of next-generation enabling tools for chemical synthesis. For organizations with developmental programs, we provide custom production services via "Collaborate Locally. Commercialize Globally.™" model to afford exceptional value in terms of innovation, quality and IP assurance, and cost-efficiency. For more information on realizing your scientific aspirations now and tomorrow, please visit www.aspirasci.com.

About Catylix, Inc.
Catylix, Inc. is an early-stage company specializing in the development and commercialization of new fluorination chemistry and novel products for the incorporation of fluorine-containing functionality. For more information about Catylix, please visit http://www.catylix.com.

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SOURCE Aspira Scientific