Research Update/Issue of Shrs

Oxford Biomedica PLC
13 December 2001


For immediate release
2001/OB/19

13 December 2001

For further information, please contact:

Oxford BioMedica plc                            Tel: [phone]
Professor Alan Kingsman, Chief Executive
City/Financial Enquiries:                       Tel: [phone]
Melanie Toyne Sewell/Fiona Noblet               Mobile: [phone]
Financial Dynamics
Scientific/Trade Press Enquiries:               Tel: [phone]
Chris Gardner, HCC*De Facto Group



                   PROGRESS MADE IN NERVE REPAIR PROGRAMME

                   ISSUE OF SHARES TO KING'S COLLEGE LONDON


Oxford, United Kingdom - 13 December 2001. Oxford BioMedica plc (LSE:OXB) 
('BioMedica') announced today the achievement of research milestones in its
collaboration with King's College London in the field of nerve regeneration,
and the issue of shares in Oxford BioMedica to King's College London.

The collaboration was formed in February 2001 between Oxford BioMedica and
Professor Malcolm Maden's research team at the Centre for Developmental
Neurobiology, King's College London. The research combines BioMedica's
LentiVector(R) gene delivery system with the RARbeta2 gene, which is associated
with nerve regeneration, from King's College London. The work undertaken to
date has successfully demonstrated the ability to stimulate the growth of
adult nerve cells for a longer period than the King's College London research
team has ever observed previously.  The team has been working in the area of
nerve regeneration for over 10 years.

Under the terms of a separate agreement, also signed in February 2001, King's
College London has made a further equity investment in Oxford BioMedica,
subscribing for a total of 584,510 ordinary shares of 1p each at 25.6625 pence
per share. Following the allotment of these shares the shareholding by King's
College London in Oxford BioMedica will be 757,194 shares, representing 0.32%
of the issued share capital.

Commenting on the developments, Chief Executive Professor Alan Kingsman said:
'Considerable progress has been made with this programme. Although still at an
early stage, our collaboration with King's College London has moved closer to
the development of a treatment for nerve repair in spinal injury and in
neuropathies associated with diseases, such as diabetes and vascular
disorders.'



Notes to Editors

1.       Oxford BioMedica plc

Established in 1995, the Company specialises in the application of gene-based
technology to the development of novel therapeutics. Its three principal
activities are in the fields of gene therapy, immunotherapy and genomics, and
its principal therapeutic areas are in cancer and neurodegenerative diseases.
Oxford BioMedica plc was floated on the Alternative Investment Market of the
London Stock Exchange in December 1996, and upgraded to the United Kingdom
Listing Authority Official List in April 2001 following a successful £35.5
million fund-raising.

Oxford BioMedica has operating centres in Oxford, UK and San Diego, USA

Currently Oxford BioMedica has corporate collaborations with Aventis,
AstraZeneca, IDM, Nycomed Amersham, Valentis, Virbac and Wyeth. BioMedica has
two products in Phase I/II clinical trials: MetXia(R) for late-stage breast
cancer, and TroVax(R) for late-stage colorectal cancer.


2.       King's College London

King's is one of the two oldest and largest colleges of the University of
London with some 12,200 undergraduate students and over 4,500 postgraduates in
ten schools of study.

The College is among the UK's top four higher education institutions for the
number of highest-rated subject-areas for research quality.  It is in the top
group of five universities for research earnings and has an annual turnover of
£285 million and research income from grants and contracts in excess of £80
million (1999-2000).



3.       LentiVector(R)

In gene therapy, the aim is to deliver a gene and its necessary regulatory
elements (the gene construct) to the cell surface, using a vector to mediate
the transfer across the cell membrane and, in some cases, into the nucleus.
LentiVector(R) is a new and increasingly powerful vector system based on
lentiviruses, which have similar features to retroviruses in the ease of
manipulation, predictable integration and reliable gene expression and
regulation. However, their main advantage over retroviruses is the ability to
function in non-dividing cells or cells that are dividing slowly - a feature
of many clinically important tissues including the central and peripheral
nervous systems.

Oxford BioMedica is a leader in the development and application of lentiviral
vectors. Its proprietary LentiVector(R) technology is protected by
international patents, including recently granted US and European patents.



4.       World Wide Web

This release is also available on the World Wide Web at 
http://www.oxfordbiomedica.co.uk