Provectus Biopharmaceuticals Inc.: Provectus Biopharmaceuticals and VisiRose Announce U.S. Patent Award for Light-Independent Antibacterial Eye Drop Targeting Drug-Resistant Ocular Infections

• New IP covers topical rose bengal sodium ophthalmic composition against MRSA and other resistant Gram-positive bacteria without requiring light activation.
  
  
• VisiRose to hold exclusive ophthalmic license.
  

KNOXVILLE, Tenn., June 30, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. ("Provectus" or the "Company") (OTCQB: PVCT), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing pharmaceutical grade rose bengal sodium ("RBS") active pharmaceutical ingredient ("API") as a platform therapeutic, and VisiRose, Inc. ("VisiRose"), Provectus's clinical-stage ophthalmology subsidiary, today announced the issuance of U.S. Patent No. 12,661,335, titled "Halogenated Xanthene-Containing Topical Anti-Gram-Positive Bacterial Ophthalmic Composition and Method." The patent covers a topical eye drop formulation of RBS API for treating Gram-positive bacterial keratitis, including drug-resistant strains such as MRSA and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus.

Why it matters: The data underlying the patent show RBS killing resistant Gram-positive bacteria and eradicating biofilms in the dark, with no light step required. That opens the door to a self-administered eye drop with the same use pattern as existing prescription antibiotic drops but aimed at resistant infections those drugs no longer reliably treat.

What the patent covers:

• Light-independent killing. Claims cover antibacterial activity in the substantial absence of activating light.
• Resistant-pathogen coverage. Claimed effective concentrations span methicillin- and vancomycin-resistant S. aureus and drug-resistant E. faecalis and E. faecium. These are among the organisms where first-line antibiotics are failing.
• Biofilm eradication. Chronic, recurrent ocular infections are often biofilm-driven and tolerant to standard antibiotics, including linezolid. The claimed composition eradicates biofilms in both light and dark conditions.
• Defined, tear-compatible formulation. Claims fix concentration (about 0.2 to 50 µg/mL), pH (6.5 to 7.6, matching normal human tear pH), viscosity, and osmolality. These are specifications aimed at ocular tolerability and FDA formulation review.
• Wide safety margin. In preclinical testing, the cytotoxicity threshold in mammalian cells sat well above the concentrations needed to kill resistant bacteria, the gap a potential topical product needs to support repeat dosing.
  

Market and disease implications: A light-independent formulation is structurally a standard eye drop. It can be prescribed, dispensed, and self-administered the way chloramphenicol or fluoroquinolone drops are today, but for resistant-organism infections those drugs increasingly cannot clear. That bears most directly on:

• Bacterial keratitis caused by drug-resistant Gram-positive organisms, a leading cause of preventable corneal blindness and a recurring diagnosis in contact lens wearers.
• Chronic and recurrent blepharitis and conjunctivitis, where biofilm tolerance limits the durability of standard antibiotic regimens.
• Contact-lens-associated infections, a population for whom a take-home, light-free drop is a meaningfully different treatment experience.
  

Platform note: RBS is the proprietary synthetic small molecule and API underlying Provectus's clinical-stage oncology and dermatology programs and VisiRose's clinical-stage ophthalmology program. The patent award extends that platform's ophthalmology intellectual property ("IP") footprint. VisiRose is being granted an exclusive license to it to develop and commercialize ophthalmic applications under its field license from Provectus. The patent issues from U.S. Application No. 18/089,134, filed December 27, 2022 and claiming priority to a provisional application filed December 28, 2021. The University of Tennessee Research Foundation is a co-assignee on the patent.

Ed Pershing, Chairman, Board of Directors, VisiRose and Chairman, Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer, Provectus, said, "This patent gives us composition and method protection for a finding that matters deeply: rose bengal sodium can kill resistant Gram-positive bacteria, including MRSA, and eradicate their biofilms without a light-activation step. It's intellectual property that further strengthens the case for our proprietary rose bengal sodium as a platform molecule."

About Provectus

Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing a pipeline of immunotherapy medicines based on rose bengal sodium, a first-in-class synthetic small molecule from the halogenated xanthene family. The Company's clinical programs span oncology, dermatology, and ophthalmology, with additional proof-of-concept and early discovery programs in hematology, wound healing, infectious diseases, tissue repair, and neurodegeneration. For more information, visit www.provectusbio.com.

About VisiRose

VisiRose is a clinical-stage biotechnology company of the University of Miami and Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, focused on commercializing the Miller School of Medicine's Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and its Ophthalmic Biophysics Center's innovative ocular research in infectious keratitis using Provectus's synthetic small molecule rose bengal sodium. For more information, please visit www.visirose.com.

Forward Looking Statements

The information in this press release may include "forward-looking statements," within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, relating to the business of Provectus and its affiliates, which are based on currently available information and current assumptions, expectations, and projections about future events and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "aim," "likely," "outlook," "seek," "anticipate," "budget," "plan," "continue," "estimate," "expect," "forecast," "may," "will," "would," "project," "projection," "predict," "potential," "targeting," "intend," "can," "could," "might," "should," "believe," and similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook.

The safety and efficacy of the agents and/or uses under investigation have not been established. There is no guarantee that the agents will receive health authority approval or become commercially available in any country for the uses being investigated or that such agents as products will achieve any particular revenue levels.

Due to the risks, uncertainties, and assumptions inherent in forward-looking statements, readers should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof or as of the date specifically specified herein, and Provectus undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

Risks, uncertainties, and assumptions include those discussed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including those described in Item 1A of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 2025 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2026.

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Provectus Biopharmaceuticals, Inc.
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Investor Relations & Media
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