Research Grants

Immupharma PLC 11 April 2006 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE London, 11 April 2006 ImmuPharma commences drawdown of prestigious research grants exceeding €1m ImmuPharma PLC (LSE:IMM), the specialist pharmaceutical discovery and development company, announced today that it has started drawing down independent grants to assist with the development of its lead drug candidates. The grants which were approved in principle at the time of ImmuPharma's AIM admission in February 2006,have been awarded by ANVAR and ANR, two French state organisations that support innovative and promising R&D programmes. These grants were specifically dedicated to the preclinical and clinical development of ImmuPharma's lead compound Lupus IPP-201101 currently in Phase I and to the new class of MRSA antibiotics IPP-203101 presently finishing preclinical development. Dr Robert Zimmer, President and Chief Scientific Officer, commented: 'We are delighted to have been chosen for these grants, out of many companies that have applied. These grants are awarded to promising and solid research oriented companies that can demonstrate strong and innovative research efforts and their ability to conduct developments up to a stage where the products are commercially viable. In addition to strengthening our cash position, receiving these grants from ANVAR and ANR provides further independent validation by prestigious state organisations of ImmuPharma's strength in developing exciting new drugs.' For further information please contact: ImmuPharma PLC: Richard Warr, Executive Chairman: tel: +44 20 7152 4080 Dimitri Dimitriou, Chief Executive Officer: tel: +44 20 7152 4080 Dr Robert Zimmer, President & Chief Scientific Officer: tel: + 33 389 32 76 50 or Buchanan Communications: Lisa Baderoon, Director: tel: + 44 20 7466 5000 About ImmuPharma ImmuPharma PLC is a drug discovery and development company headquartered in London, UK and quoted on AiM of the London Stock Exchange (LSE:IMM). It has research operations in France (ImmuPharma (France) SA) and Switzerland (ImmuPharma AG). ImmuPharma is dedicated to the development of novel drugs, largely based on peptide therapeutics, to treat serious medical conditions such as autoimmune diseases characterised by: o blockbuster potential in niche markets o very high margin o low promotional costs in few specialised physicians and centres and ower risk of drug development and lower development costs ImmuPharma is a currently developing drug candidates for three different medical conditions, each of which would represent a significant breakthrough in its field. The furthest advanced drug candidate targets Lupus, a disease for which there is currently no cure or specific treatment. The other two address moderate to severe pain (such as that experienced by cancer sufferers and post-operative patients), and MRSA and similar severe hospital-acquired resistant infections. All three have significant sales potential as well as low marketing costs and a relatively low risk of development failure. One or more have the potential to be fast-tracked by the US Food and Drug Administration according to 'Guidance for Industry: Fast Track Drug Development Programs - Designation, Development and Application Review' issued July 2004 and could therefore obtain their market authorization by 2010. Key to the potential success of ImmuPharma is its unique collaborative agreement with Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, France's scientific research institution. This agreement grants ImmuPharma worldwide exclusive rights to exploit certain key discoveries. In addition to its three leading drug candidates, ImmuPharma has a drug development pipeline using its rights to a virtual chemical library of hundreds of thousands of molecules as well as an innovative technology for converting peptides to drug candidates. ImmuPharma has the option to commercialise its assets itself or to license them to other pharmaceutical companies at an earlier stage. Notes to editors: The products Treatment of Lupus (IPP-201101) This is a long-term treatment for Lupus, a chronic, life-threatening autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks healthy cells. There is currently no cure and existing medications only treat the symptoms whereas ImmuPharma's drug candidate has the potential to produce remission of the disease in a substantial proportion of patients. Based on independent forecasts, the value of ImmuPharma's Lupus drug is estimated to be 'substantial' with peak annual sales forecast to generate in excess of $4 billion. Severe pain relief (IPP-102199) ImmuPharma is developing a non-addictive compound for relieving moderate to severe pain, such as experienced by cancer sufferers and post-surgical patients. Most existing treatments are opioid-based (explain) and tend to have serious side effects. ImmuPharma's new treatment is based on met-enkephalin, the body's internal analgesic. IPP-102199 is being developed to have major advantages over morphine such as longer pain relief duration and reduced side effects. The market for chronic opioids in the US currently exceeds $3.5 billion and is growing by more than 10 to 20 per cent a year. Antibiotic for MRSA and similar highly resistant infections (IPP-203101) This is a novel antibiotic to counter the effects of MRSA and other severe hospital-acquired, resistant infections which affect some two million people in the US, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ImmuPharma's drug candidate uniquely uses an electrical charge rather than biochemical methods against MRSA and other bacterial strains. It is hoped this novel approach will reduce their potential to become resistant. Key management Richard Warr, MA, executive chairman, (age 45) has 20 years experience in investment banking and the capital markets. He was previously a director of ABN Amro; director and head of European sales and marketing at Credit Lyonnais; executive director at Dresdner Kleinwort Benson Securities Ltd; and head of European equity distribution at Swiss Bank Corporation. He has extensive experience in corporate and governmental equity capital market transactions. Dimitri F Dimitriou, MSc, chief executive officer, (age 45) has 20 years experience in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry. He was senior director, worldwide business development, at GlaxoSmithKline, where his responsibilities included licensing deals, alliances and collaborations on a worldwide basis. Dr Robert Zimmer, MD, PhD, chief science officer, (age 58) began his career in 1985 with Roche in Basle, where he was responsible for numerous Phase I studies. In 1990 he joined JAGO in Basle and, on its acquisition by SkyePharma, became director and head of research and development at SkyePharma. His expertise includes managerial experience in multifunctional research and development and the assessment of technologies with multi-national pharmaceutical companies. Paddy Walker-Taylor, FCA, MCT chief financial officer, (age 59) was previously finance director of Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd. He was involved in the AIM float of ISG Group, in which McAlpine had a minority shareholding. Previously he had held a number of key financial positions including finance director of Woolworths plc and treasurer of Marks & Spencer. Douglas Paterson, MA, FCA, senior non-executive director, (age 62) has been a chartered accountant for 37 years and was a senior audit partner at Coopers & Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers) for 22 years. He currently holds a number of non-executive directorships, including Close Brothers Group plc and Goldman Sachs International Bank. Anthony Johnson, B Pharm (Hons), MSc, MRPharmS, non-executive director, (age 62) has over 30 years experience in the pharmaceutical industry, focused on the scientific aspects of deal making, support during competitive analysis, technical due diligence and input in development strategy. He was formerly senior director of scientific licensing at SmithKline Beecham (now GlaxoSmithKline). Collaboration with Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) ImmuPharma has important collaboration arrangements with Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, France's scientific research institution, including a research collaboration agreement relating to the therapeutic use of peptides and peptide derivatives. ImmuPharma has been granted the worldwide exclusive rights to exploit all discoveries made under this agreement. ImmuPharma will co-own the relevant intellectual property with CNRS which will share in the revenue generated by ImmuPharma from exploiting CNRS's licensed and co-owned rights. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

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