ALBUQUERQUE, NM – November 12, 2004 – VeraLight was awarded first place for its poster, “Noninvasive Diabetes Screening: An Important Tool in the War on Diabetes”, in a juried poster session held at the 4th Annual Iberoamerican Research and Development Summit (AIRDS). The theme for this year’s AIRDS was “Measurement Science Meets Bioscience”. Six representatives from the biotechnology, biopharmaceutical and venture capital industries performed the judging. The criteria used for judging included:

1. The novelty of the concept or innovation and the clarity of its description
2. The feasibility of the technology development plan
3. The potential market impact
4. The feasibility of the commercialization plan
5. The capability of the research and development team

VeraLight received a cash award of $20,000 and a free patent application from the intellectual property law firm of Roberts, Abokhair and Mardula (RAM), LLC. The Technology Ventures Corporate donated $10,000 of the award in the form of a Roadrunner grant and the other $10,000 came from donations by the New Mexico Biotechnology and Biomedical Association, NextGen, RAM and AIRDS.

VeraLight CEO, David Van Avermaete, said, “We are thrilled by the industry validation of our noninvasive diabetes screening product concept and business plan. The prize money and patent application will accelerate VeraLight’s product development efforts. We deeply appreciate the time, effort and generosity of the poster session organizers, the volunteer judges and the poster session sponsors.”