OSSINING, N.Y., July 9, 2004--Warren Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Warren), a company engaged in developing novel treatments for devastating injuries and diseases, today announced the publication of a study showing the effectiveness of its compounds in a variety of neurologic injury and disease models. Working in collaboration with its partner, the Danish pharmaceutical company H. Lundbeck A/S, and collaborators at the Mario Negri Pharmacological Institute (Milan, Italy), University of Messina (Messina, Italy) and Dokuz Eylul University (Izmir, Turkey), Warren has shown for the first time that separation of two distinct biological activities of erythropoietin (EPO) can be achieved by a variety of modifications to the molecule. The article, entitled "Derivatives of Erythropoietin That Are Tissue Protective But Not Erythropoietic" was published in today's issue of the journal Science.

EPO is a naturally-occurring protein that increases red blood cell production, and recombinant human EPO is marketed for the treatment of anemia. Millions of cancer patients and those in kidney failure have received EPO for treatment of low blood count, generating over $9 billion in annual worldwide sales. This compound has attracted special interest recently because of its newly discovered role in protecting tissues from diverse injuries. The surprising discovery several years ago by Warren scientists that EPO crosses the blood brain barrier opened the way for development of protective compounds that can safely be administered by injection. Despite a positive early clinical trial in human stroke, long-term use of EPO will be limited because of increased red cell and platelet counts above normal and the potential for blood clots or hypertension.

Warren and its collaborators have synthesized molecules exhibiting only the tissue-protective effects of EPO, with no effect on the classical EPO receptor. This permits the administration of and sustained use in non-anemic patien
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Contact: Betsy Abrams
babrams@warrenpharma.com
914-762-7586
Warren Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
8-Jul-2004

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