烟草在线据Zacks报道编译　　当一些国家政府正迫使烟草大亨通过烟包向人们展示卷烟的致命影响时，有趣的是菲莫已经准备好证明烟草也可以挽救生命。

　　为了巩固它的使命，该公司巨资持有加拿大生物科技公司Medicago公司40%的股权，帮助后者开发流感疫苗。顺便说一句，有趣的是，流感疫苗是利用烟叶开发的。

　　通过一个50万美元的小研究合同，菲莫同Medicago的关系可以追溯到2007年。2008年11月，该烟草巨头向Medicago公司投资了1500万美元，在去年4月，菲莫购买了价值900多万美元的Medicago的股份，这使它拥有9.86%的Medicago公司的发行股份。

　　此后，菲莫阶段性地增加了其在该公司的股份。最后在2011年10月，菲莫同Medicago公司签订了认购协议，通过两次以每普通股65美分的价格累计发行了3455万普通股，完成了2250万美元的私下配售。

　　在第一次发行前，菲莫持有Medicago公司30.2%的发行普通股，第一次发行后，菲莫持有的普通股为35.5%，随后第二次零售巨头持有的百分比增至40%。

　　私下配售收益被用于临床开发、制造基于植物的VLP疫苗、一般公司及营运资金用途。

　　Medicago从1999年开始运作，它正在努力开发来自草本苜蓿的流感疫苗。然而，因为要从苜蓿中开发出产品需要很长时间，Medicago决定将其焦点转向烟草。

　　根据Medicago公司，预计将到2014年把疫苗推向市场，并获得产品许可。

　　菲莫一直热衷于使用产品的新用途，通过研究和开发，使吸烟更具用户友好性，并减少吸烟的有害影响。2011年5月，它向杜克大学的尼古丁和戒烟研究中心的主任Jed Rose购买了气溶性尼古丁释放系统。这项新技术向用户肺部提供尼古丁，但是没有烟雾。

　　这一技术将帮助烟民直接从卷烟中获得尼古丁，而不会产生通常伴有的烟雾与有毒物质。这一努力与公司的降低与吸烟相关的死亡和疾病的努力一致。

Philip Morris: Tobacco Saves Life

Zacks
Jan 13, 2012

　　While the governments of several countries are forcing the tobacco biggies to showcase the deadly effects of cigarettes through their packets, Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM - News) has interestingly geared up to prove that tobacco can save lives too.

　　To strengthen its mission, the company has invested heavily for a 40% stake in the Canadian biotech company Medicago Inc., helping the latter to develop influenza vaccines. Incidentally and interestingly, the vaccine for flu is being developed using tobacco leaves.

　　Philip Morris' relation with Medicago dates back to 2007, through a small research contract of $500,000. In November 2008, the tobacco major invested $15 million in Medicago and in April last year, Philip Morris bought more than $9 million worth of shares in Medicago, which gave it 9.86% of Medicago's issued and outstanding shares.

　　After that, Philip Morris increased its stake in the company in phases. Finally in October, 2011, it entered into a subscription agreement with Medicago to complete a private placement of $22.5 million through the issuance of an aggregate of 34,550,000 common shares at a price of 65 cents per common share in two tranches.

　　Before the first tranche, Philip Morris held 30.2% of the outstanding common shares of Medicago. The first tranche gave Philip Morris control over 35.5% of the common shares, and following the second tranche the percentage of common shares held by the retail giant went up to 40%.

　　Proceeds from the private placement were used for clinical development, manufacture of the plant-based VLP vaccines, general corporate and working capital purposes.

　　Medicago started functioning in 1999, and it was trying to develop vaccines for flu from the herb Alfalfa. However, since it was taking a long time to develop products from Alfalfa, Medicago decided to shift its focus to tobacco.

　　As per Medicago, it expects to bring the vaccine to the market and get it licensed by 2014.

　　Philip Morris has always been keen on using product innovation through research and development to make tobacco smoking more user-friendly and reduce the harmful effects of puffing. In May 2011, it bought the patent and global rights to an aerosol nicotine-delivery system developed by Jed Rose, director of Duke's Center for Nicotine and Smoking Cessation Research. The new technology delivers nicotine to users' lungs but doesn't involve smoking.

　　This technology will help the smokers to get the nicotine straight from the cigarette without generating the accompanied smoke and the toxic substances. This endeavor resonates the company's effort to reduce death and diseases associated with smoking.