Ebola Fighter, AVI, Raises $16.5M

Luke Timmerman1/30/09

AVI Biopharma, the Portland, OR-based biotech company, said it has received commitments from investors for $16.5 million in new capital. The company (NASDAQ: AVII) is selling 14.2 million shares of common stock at $1.16 a share to select institutional investors, including Eastbourne Capital Management. AVI is developing next-generation treatments that use antisense technology for gene silencing, which it says may work against deadly pathogens like the Ebola and Marburg virus.

Luke Timmerman is the National Biotech Editor of Xconomy, and the Editor of Xconomy Seattle. E-mail him at ltimmerman@xconomy.com or follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ldtimmerman.