News Article

Harvard Business School Awards Yaso Biotechnology New Venture Prize
Date: May 06, 2013
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Featured firm in this article: Yaso Therapeutics Inc of Phoenix, AZ



New Product Aimed To Prevent Sexually Transmitted Infections and Unplanned Pregnancies.

Scottsdale, AZ, May 6, 2013 - Yaso Biotechnology Inc. today announced winning a $50,000 prize from Harvard Business School, Cambridge, MA, in Harvard's 2013 New Venture Competition held April 29, 2013. The prize follows an intense competition among start-up firms, with Yaso winning the Social Enterprise Track. These firms leverage innovative business practices and managerial disciplines to drive sustained, high-impact social change.

Yaso Biotechnology Inc. is developing a proprietary drug platform to improve global health. Yaso's products will offer significant innovations in the fields of epidemic disease prevention and reproductive health, while being relatively inexpensive to produce, and easy to distribute. Following clinical trials and approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Yaso's product will be commercialized as an over-the-counter vaginal gel used by women prior to intercourse. Yaso also plans an educational and social networking site to support healthy lifestyles for young women.

Mary Weitzel, CEO and HBS graduate stated, "We continue to make significant progress toward our goals, and are honored to win this prestigious prize from Harvard Business School, to develop our product for women. We appreciate the confidence HBS shares with our research team in the scientific, commercial and humanitarian potential of our product. We are poised to dramatically reduce healthcare costs, both private and governmental, globally."

There is currently no over-the-counter, woman-directed product that provides protection from sexually transmitted infections (STI) including HIV/AIDS, and unplanned pregnancies. Globally, there were over three hundred million new STI cases (not including HIV/AIDS). In the US, ethnic minorities have particularly high incidence rates of STIs and unplanned pregnancies.