Generex Biotechnology CEO Offers an Open Letter to Shareholders and Provides an Update on Corporate Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic

MIRAMAR, Fla., April 06, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Generex Biotechnology Corporation (www.generex.com) (OTCQB:GNBT) (http://www.otcmarkets.com/stock/GNBT/quote) President & CEO Joseph Moscato offers an open letter to shareholders to provide an update on the company’s response, operationally and scientifically.

Dear Generex Shareholders,

The emergence and rapid escalation of the COVID-19 pandemic has deeply impacted our lives as we never could have imagined. During these uncertain times the health and well-being of our Generex family, including our employees, shareholders, investors and partners is paramount. For the well-being of all of our stakeholders, we are committed to following the precautions of health advisors and adhering to suggestions, advice, and laws set up by local municipalities, cities, states, and the federal government to stop this pandemic that has disrupted the world. Generex Biotechnology remains dedicated to safeguarding your investment in GNBT as we continue working towards positive outcomes into the future through our strategic initiatives and development programs, including our previously announced efforts to develop a vaccine for the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

We want to take this time to update shareholders on the steps we are taking to efficiently manage the businesses of Generex and our subsidiaries through these challenging times. We are virtually fully operational with all our business management teams and their employees through video conference and are committed to following through with our short, mid and long-term goals and plans to add value for our shareholders.

As reported Generex has jumped into the vaccine race with its Ii-Key-COVID-19 Complete Vaccine, which is designed to activate both the cellular (CD4 and CD8 T cells) and humoral (antibody) immune responses. As previously reported, we have signed an agreement with a Chinese consortium to develop our Complete Vaccine for China. Since signing the agreement, Generex has developed and refined our vaccine plans and has invoiced the Chinese consortium for the upfront payment and licensing fee.

Generex has also partnered with EpiVax, a leader in computational vaccinology, that has developed algorithms to identify specific amino acid peptide sequences or “epitopes” that are predicted to activate the various cellular components of the immune system including CD4 T Cells, CD8 T Cells, and B Cells that produce antibodies. An additional advantage of their vaccinology algorithms is their ability to “dehumanize” peptide sequences to minimize autoimmune reactions. EpiVax has identified a series of epitopes of the SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins that may be used to produce a vaccine. Generex plans to manufacture laboratory scale amounts of the EpiVax peptides linked with our Ii-Key technology to screen against blood samples from patients who have recovered from COVID-19. We are in the process of identifying hospitals and research centers that can provide us with the blood samples for peptide epitope screening. We expect this screening process to yield the best 3 to 5 Ii-Key peptides that we anticipate will make the most safe and effective vaccine for human clinical trials.