Winnipeg biotechnology company Kane Biotech Inc. has acquired the world rights to a technology developed by the faculty of dentistry at the University of Toronto that could prevent the development of dental plaque.

The technology includes inhibitors that have been shown to prevent the process called competence stimulating peptide (CSP) that contributes to plaque formation, which in turn leads to dental cavities and gum disease.

Michael Coutts, a spokesman for Kane, said the development is important news for the company, which is developing molecules that can be used to disperse biofilms.

"This couldn't fit more perfectly with our core expertise," Coutts said. "This will provide us with a second path to work on."

Kane had been concentrating on the dispersal of biofilms that coat medical devices. Although they are somewhat different methods of preventing biofilm, both paths address the phenomenon of bacterial film that adheres to hard surfaces.

"Kane Biotech is excited about the remarkable potential for developing products based upon the CSP target, which gives us a major advantage in the pursuit of a product to inhibit perhaps the most notorious of all biofilms, dental plaque," Kane's president Marcus Enns said in a prepared statement. "A product that safely inhibits CSP activity will be a major breakthrough and will give Kane Biotech access to several very significant markets."

The technology was developed by Dr. Dennis Cvitkovitch, an associate professor in dentistry at the U of T. In the summer of 2004, Cvitkovitch became a member of Kane's scientific advisory board.

"We are all very excited to be working with Kane," Cvitkovitch said in a telephone interview from Toronto. "Everyone wanted this to happen and Kane is providing us with a great opportunity."

Last week, Kane announced the completion of a private placement of shares that raised $1.2 million. Coutts said raising that money was not directly related to the U of T technology deal.