Oxagen increases investment in Pyrosequencing technology, scaling up to high-throughput PTP TM system

OXAGEN INCREASES INVESTMENT IN PYROSEQUENCING TECHNOLOGY, SCALING UP TO HIGH-THROUGHPUT PTPtm SYSTEM Sale is Oxagen's second purchase of Pyrosequencing technology for Applied Genomics Uppsala, Sweden, August 9, 2001-Pyrosequencing AB (Stockholm: PYRO A), a developer, manufacturer and marketer of DNA sequencing systems for applied genetic analysis, sold its high-throughput PTPtm system to U.K.- based genomics firm Oxagen Limited, the Company announced today. The sale comes just months after Oxagen purchased Pyrosequencing's moderate- throughput PSQtm96 System and represents an increased investment in Pyrosequencingtm technology. PTPtm (Preferred Technology Program) offers a fully automated high-throughput process that incorporates robotics for sample preparation. Introduced to the market earlier this year, the system utilizes 384-well microplates and is capable of scoring up to 100,000 SNPs per day. Oxagen, which aims to identify new therapeutics and diagnostics using large-scale family studies to understand the association of genetic variations, will use PTP to study the genetics of complex diseases. "Our recent experience with the PSQ 96 has proved to us that the Pyrosequencing technology is easy to use, cost-effective and reliable," stated Dr. Trevor Nicholls, Chief Executive Officer of Oxagen. "PTP should enable us to scale-up our SNP genotyping capacity based on a proven technology and to reach results at greater speed and lower cost without loss of quality." "We are pleased with the market's adoption of PTP since its introduction in February and are particularly delighted to expand our relationship with Oxagen, a satisfied PSQ 96 System customer," stated Erik Walldén, President and CEO of Pyrosequencing AB. "Repeat orders are a strong validation of our business and a testament to the performance and relevance of Pyrosequencing technology in today's applied genomics market," he said. Pyrosequencing introduced the PSQ 96 System, its first DNA sequencing product, just 14 months ago and is already leading the market in both the number of systems sold and the diversity of its customer base. Designed for moderate-throughput processing, the PSQ 96 System offers a scalable cost-effective solution for SNP analysis and other sequence analyses. The Company has currently sold more than 100 systems worldwide, across all major market segments including pharmaceutical and biotech companies as well as academic research institutions. About Oxagen Oxagen has rapidly established itself as a leading player in the study of the complex disease genetics, conducting programmes in cardiovascular disease, inflammatory disease and metabolic and endocrine disorders, including osteoporosis. Oxagen aims to identify new therapeutics and diagnostics by capitalising on insights from genetics and specialises in using large-scale family studies to understand the association of genes and genetic variations with disease. The Company believes that this approach is the most effective way to provide fundamental insights into the molecular mechanisms of disease. In addition to furthering the discovery of disease-related genes, Oxagen's database of clinical cases and controls and its increasing collection of validated candidate genes offers a valuable resource to other life sciences companies wishing to understand the impact of genetic variation on the discovery, development and marketing of therapeutics throughout the product cycle. Oxagen has formed collaborations with more than 30 leading clinical research groups in the UK, continental Europe and worldwide. Oxagen is running gene discovery programmes in the areas of cardiovascular disease (in partnership with AstraZeneca), inflammation (asthma, inflammatory bowel disease and psoriasis) and metabolic and endocrine disorders (osteoporosis, endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome and auto-immune thyroid disease). The Company has established extensive databases of phenotype and genotype records in these diseases which, combined with the growing list of candidate genes and proprietary intellectual property arising from the analysis of the samples, offer numerous partnering opportunities for companies seeking novel target discovery programmes and pharmacogenomic validation. For more information on Oxagen please see the Company website at http://www.oxagen.co.uk About Pyrosequencing AB Pyrosequencing AB develops, manufactures and sells complete solutions for applied genetic analysis based on its proprietary Pyrosequencingtm technology, a simple-to-use DNA sequencing technique. In the post-genome era, Pyrosequencing's technology has established the Company as one of the leading suppliers of solutions for accurate, consistent DNA analysis in research institutions and pharmaceutical, genomics and agbiotech companies. For the analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), the PSQtm96 System with SNP Software and Reagent Kits is used by customers such as AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, the Harvard Center for Cancer Prevention, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Karolinska Institute and DuPont Agriculture. The Company's Sequence Analysis Software and Reagent Kits together with the PSQ 96 System are used for the identification of gene-specific DNA sequences for applications such as bacterial and viral typing where speed and ease of use are essential. The Company is headquartered in Uppsala, Sweden with North American operations located in Westborough, Massachusetts. Pyrosequencing AB also has sales offices and distribution partners in Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. Pyrosequencing AB is listed on the OM Stockholm Exchange. The Company's web address is www.pyrosequencing.com. Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking. These may be identified by the use of forward-looking words or phrases such as "believe," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "should," "planned," "estimated," and "potential," among others. These forward-looking statements are based on Pyrosequencing's current expectations. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a "safe harbor" for such forward-looking statements. In order to comply with the terms of the safe harbor, Pyrosequencing notes that a variety of factors could cause actual results and experience to differ materially from the anticipated results or other expectations expressed in such forward- looking statements. Such uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, risks associated with management of growth and international operations (including the effects of currency fluctuations), variability of operating results, the commercial development of the DNA sequencing and genomics market, nucleic acid-based molecular diagnostics market, and genetic vaccination and gene therapy markets, competition, rapid or unexpected changes in technologies, fluctuations in demand for Pyrosequencing's products (including seasonal fluctuations), difficulties in successfully adapting the Company's products to integrated solutions and producing such products, and the Company's ability to identify and develop new products and to differentiate its products from competitors. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Pyrosequencing AB Erik Walldén Theresa McNeely, Sr. Director President & CEO Investor and Public Relations erik.wallden@pyrosequencing.com theresa.mcneely@pyrosequencing.com Phone: +46 18 565902 or Phone: +1 877 797 6767 070-326 98 70 Oxagen Limited Dr. Trevor Nicholls Chief Executive Officer Phone: +44 (0) 1235 443300 ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2001/08/09/20010809BIT00510/bit0003.doc http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2001/08/09/20010809BIT00510/bit0003.pdf