New Dundee Research Collaboration to Evaluate Drug Safety Risks Early

Evaluating the safety of drugs early in development to ensure the

safety of patients is a major issue facing the pharmaceutical industry
as shown by some recent high profile withdrawals of new drugs in the
later stages of testing.

CXR Biosciences Ltd. today announces a major new £3 million
collaborative research and development program aimed at predicting the
safety risks of new drugs earlier in their development. The three-year
project is a collaboration between CXR Biosciences, Wyeth
Pharmaceuticals, and the University of Dundee and is co-funded by the
Technology Strategy Board. An important feature is that this
collaboration aims to take the results of industrial and academic
laboratory research directly into clinical practice.

A team of scientists at CXR Biosciences headed by Professor Roland Wolf
will work with Wyeth scientists and core lab staff based at the new
Translational Medicine Research Centre (TMRC) in Dundee. The University
of Dundee is also part of the collaboration involving the research group
of Professor Mike Ferguson at the College of Life Sciences, and clinical
researchers Dr. John Dillon and Professor Andrew Morris at the School of
Medicine.

The scientists will identify 'biomarker' proteins whose presence in
the blood indicates the very earliest effects of a drug that could
eventually lead to toxic damage in organs such as the liver, heart or
muscle. The researchers will then develop assays to measure circulating
levels of these biomarkers to allow the early evaluation of the possible
toxic effects of new drugs before side effects develop. The tests could
also be useful in the diagnosis of certain types of disease.

The assays will be used in the laboratory to identify drug candidates
that present too high a safety risk to be advanced into clinical trials.
They will also be used in the clinic to give warning of drugs that could
cause harm if treatment were to be continued or if the dose level were
to be increased.

Professor Roland Wolf, co-founder of CXR Biosciences said: "This is
an extremely exciting programme of work linking academic research with a
biotechnology company and a major pharmaceuticals company. It is unique
in such drug safety programmes in taking the science all the way from
the laboratory to the clinic".

Professor Mike Ferguson from the University of Dundee said: "We are
very pleased to contribute our expertise in the technology of
'proteomics' to this important programme. It is particularly
satisfying to collaborate with clinicians and scientists from the
biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries in a truly
multi-disciplinary study that will lead to safer medicines for
patients" .

NOTES TO EDITORS

About CXR Biosciences
CXR Biosciences Ltd. is dedicated to advancing innovative approaches
for drug development and safety assessment and supports numerous
programs to research and commercialise new technologies for the
pharmaceutical industry. The company has business relationships with
over sixty customers and collaborators, including pharmaceutical
companies, chemical companies, biotechnology companies, leading
universities and research institutions. CXR Biosciences Ltd. is located
in Dundee, Scotland. More information can be found at
www.cxrbiosciences.com

About the Technology Strategy Board
The Technology Strategy Board is a business-led executive
non-departmental public body, established by the government. Its
mission is to promote and support research into, and development and
exploitation of, technology and innovation for the benefit of UK
business, in order to increase economic growth and improve the quality
of life. It is sponsored by the Department of Innovation, Universities
and Skills (DIUS).

Contact:
Dr. Peter Mulderry, (petermulderry@cxrbiosciences.com) Head of Proje
ct
Management, CXR Biosciences Ltd.
Tel : +44 (0) 1382 432 156