Panacea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Announces Collaboration with Rhode Island Hospital/Brown University to Treat Oxidative Stress Induced Conditions Including Alzheimer's Disease

Agreement expands Company's integrated, multi-technology neurodegenerative disease drug development program based on neuroprotection

ROCKVILLE, Md.--(BW HealthWire)--June 27, 2002-- Panacea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is pleased to announce a Collaborative Research Agreement with researchers at Rhode Island Hospital and Brown University for the development of drugs to prevent and treat oxidative stress induced neurodegeneration in a number of conditions including Alzheimer's disease. The agreement provides an option that would grant exclusive, worldwide license to discoveries made through the collaboration to the Company.

Suzanne M. de la Monte, M.D., M.P.H., Associate Professor of Medicine, Pathology, and Pathobiology, leads the group of researchers at Brown University School of Medicine.

Dr. de la Monte and her group have made several discoveries towards determining the mechanisms of oxidative injury mediated neuronal impairment and neuronal cell death. The collaboration will utilize proprietary in vitro and in vivo models that allow high-throughput screening to identify drug candidates that would be used to either prevent the onset or reduce the progression of neuronal degeneration caused by oxidative damage.

Hossein A. Ghanbari, Ph.D., President and CEO of Panacea stated, "Our pledge to aggressively assess and in-license cutting-edge research and discoveries for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases continues with this partnership. The goal of our program is to build a highly integrated technology portfolio based on neuroprotection and aimed at abnormalities relevant to the etiology of the disease and not simply the clinical or histopathological symptoms."

Panacea's Integrated, Multi-Technology Program

As part of its integrated, multi-technology approach, the Company has previously announced the licensing of technology from two groups of researchers at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio covering oxidative stress and cell cycle abnormalities in neurodegenerative diseases, particularly AD.

Brain tissue studies have clearly demonstrated that the affected neurons in AD brains are more prone to oxidative stress as indicated by increased level of oxidative stress markers. The Company and its collaborators have developed a proprietary in vitro model for studying oxidative stress in AD-derived cells versus normal as well as for screening compounds that protect neurons prone to oxidative stress. Recent findings were published in the Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology (Vol. 60, page 504).

Neuronal cells in the brain do not normally divide. However, it has been demonstrated that, in AD brains, some neurons begin to divide without being able to go through various phases of cell division. These cells are prone to oxidative stress and degenerate readily. The Company and its collaborators have developed a proprietary in vitro model for high-throughput screening of compounds aimed at protecting the neurons as well as for studying the mechanism of cell cycle involvement in neurodegeneration and finding a molecular target for developing drugs for AD and other neurodegenerative diseases. These findings were published in two articles in Neurobiology of Aging (Vol. 21, No. 6, pages 807-813 and 837-841).

About Panacea Pharmaceuticals

Panacea Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is an emerging biopharmaceutical company focused on utilizing functional genomics and proteomics to develop therapeutics and diagnostics for diseases with substantial unmet clinical need. The Company's product development focus is on novel proteins and biochemical pathways related to cellular regulation and cell cycle abnormalities in oncology as well as neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.

More information is available at http://www.PanaceaPharma.com.

Except for historical information presented in this press release, matters discussed herein may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management only as of the date of this release and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, uncertainties related to our access to capital, the progress, costs, and results of any clinical trials undertaken by us, progress of our research and development projects, and uncertainties related to whether our product candidates would ultimately achieve commercial success. We do not undertake any obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise unless required by law.