Pacific Biomarkers Poised to Join Battle Against Sharp Rise in Diabetes Cases Projected for the Year 2050 by Centers for Disease Control

Seattle, WA (I-Newswire) November 17, 2010 - Pacific Biomarkers, Inc. (OTCBB: PBMC), a provider of biomarker laboratory services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and diagnostics industries, has responded to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control projecting that as many as one in three adult Americans may suffer diabetes symptoms by the year 2050.

Written by four CDC researchers and an Emory University researcher, the report is titled “Projection of the year 2050 burden of diabetes in the US adult population: dynamic modeling of incidence, mortality, and prediabetes prevalence” and appears in the October 22 issue of Population Health Metrics. Its main projections include:

• Annual diagnosed diabetes incidence (new cases) will increase from 8 cases per thousand in 2008 to 15 per thousand in 2050.
• If recent increases in diabetes incidence continue and diabetes mortality is relatively low, prevalence in the US adult population will increase to 33% by 2050.
• The projected increases are largely attributable to the aging of the US population, increasing numbers of members of higher-risk minority groups in the population, and people with diabetes living longer.

Commenting on these findings, Amar Sethi, MD, PhD, Vice President of Research and Development at PBI, stated, “We at PBI agree with the CDC that effective strategies will need to be undertaken to moderate the impact of these factors on national diabetes burden. We also concur that widespread implementation of reasonably effective preventive interventions focused on high-risk subgroups of the population can considerably reduce, but not eliminate, future increases in diabetes prevalence.”

Dr. Sethi remarked that approximately 30-35% of PBI’s business has a direct connection to diabetes-related research, and a good deal of associated work is linked to the secondary impact of diabetes in the development of other ailments such as cardiovascular disease and inflammation. In addition, PBI has a significant stake in the area of treatments for obesity, a recognized high-risk factor in the development of Type 2 diabetes.

“In the past many years a great effort has been put into creating awareness to prevent this disease,” continued Dr. Sethi. “This will continue along with production of new therapeutic interventions. However, in the next 20-30 years a major focus will be given toward the food we consume leading to diabetes. Future unhealthy food may have nanoparticles attached to the glucose molecules inhibiting their absorption into the blood stream. A similar approach may also apply to the fat in food.” Yet he emphasized that a major focus must remain as well on modifying poor diet and poor exercise habits, given that some data reveal a direct cause and effect between sedentary lifestyle, obesity and diabetes.”

Michael Murphy, PhD, Chief Operating Officer at PBI and the Chair of the Community Volunteer Leadership Board for the American Diabetes Association’s Seattle market, stated, “PBI has been an avid corporate supporter of the ADA Step Out Walk to Fight Diabetes (SOWFD) campaigns in the Seattle market, raising more than $20,000 in support over the last three years. PBI ranked fifth out of a total of 57 teams for total dollars raised in the SOWFD in October 2010. This achievement was coupled with the highest per-corporate-team member (corporate teams with greater than 10 members) individual fund-raising average.”


About Pacific Biomarkers, Inc.
Established in 1989, PBI provides biomarker laboratory services and contract research services to support pharmaceutical and diagnostic manufacturers conducting human clinical trial research. PBI provides expert services in the areas of cardiovascular and musculoskeletal diseases, diabetes, obesity, and nutrition. The PBI laboratory is accredited by the College of American Pathologists, New York State, and the Lipid Standardization Program. PBI's clients include many of the world's largest pharmaceutical, biotech, and diagnostic companies. PBI also provides clinical biomarker services focusing on the emerging field of biomarker assay development and testing. Services include validating and performing custom assays for novel clinical biomarkers, immunogenicity testing, cell-based assays, mass spectrometry, and multiplex testing.

PBI is headquartered in Seattle, Washington, and its common stock trades on the OTC Bulletin Board under the symbol “PBMC”.
For more information about PBI, visit PBI's website at www.pacbio.com.

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