MediChem Life Sciences Announces Results of Shareholder
Meeting
Receives Technology Challenge Grant and Two U.S. Patents
CHICAGO, May 17, 2001 - MediChem Life Sciences (NASDAQ: MCLS),
a Chicago-based drug discovery technology and services company,
announced that it held its Annual Meeting of Shareholders today
at its Woodridge Discovery Center.
At the meeting, three directors were elected to MediChem's Board
for a term of three years each: Larry C. Hansen, Ph.D., W. Brett
Ingersoll, and Robert Weist. In addition, the shareholders ratified
the appointment of KPMG LLP as the company's auditors for the
fiscal year ending December 31, 2001.
The company also announced that it has been awarded a $350,000
grant from the Illinois Technology Challenge Grant Program (TCGP)
to develop a manufacturing process for betulinic acid (BA), a
melanoma-specific cytotoxic agent with a unique mode of action.
MediChem is currently developing the new drug candidate under
contract with Advanced Life Sciences. Advanced Life Sciences obtained
exclusive worldwide rights to BA as an anti-tumor and anti-melanoma
agent from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Obtaining enough
BA with high purity for the development of the drug has been difficult
because no scalable method for the preparation of BA has been
established.
"The grant will allow the scientists in our Strategic Drug
Development Program™ (SDDP) to develop new methods for manufacturing
this important potential anticancer compound and help move it
into clinical trials," said Michael T. Flavin, Ph.D., MediChem's
president and CEO.
In addition, MediChem's ThermoGen protein expression and biocatalysis
unit was awarded two patents covering a number of its biocatalysts
(U.S. patent application No. 6,218,167 and 6,218,163). These enzymes,
when applicable, allow chemists alternatives to traditional synthetic
routes. The advantages include better selectivity on the chemical
intermediate, the potential to reduce the number of synthetic
steps in a synthetic pathway and the use of environmentally friendly
catalysts. These new biocatalysts increase the number of tools
MediChem Life Sciences has to synthesize novel pharmaceutical
drug leads.
MediChem Life Sciences, Inc. (http://www.medichem.com) is a drug
discovery technology and services company that offers a broad
range of integrated chemistry R&D capabilities to pharmaceutical
and biotechnology companies. A leader in medicinal chemistry research
since its inception in 1987, MediChem has extended its technologies
and services through proteomics, biocatalysis, combinatorial chemistry
and chemical process development. The company's technologies and
services are designed to enable its clients to reduce overall
development time and costs, and to advance a greater number of
discovery and development opportunities through to the marketplace.
Based in Chicago, MediChem has additional offices and laboratories
in South San Francisco, CA; La Jolla, CA; Seattle, WA; Annapolis,
MD; New London, CT; Cambridge, MA and Manchester, UK.
Advanced Life Sciences, Inc., (http://www.advancedlifesciences.com)
based in Woodridge, Illinois is a privately held, early-stage
pharmaceutical technology development company that discovers and
develops therapeutic compounds to fight infection, inflammation
and cancer. The Company bridges the gap between academic discoveries
and pharmaceutical commercialization and focuses on conditions
that have significant unmet medical needs in medium sized markets.
Except for any historical information presented herein, this release
contains forward-looking statements regarding MediChem's future
activities within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995 and involve a high degree of risk and uncertainty.
These forward-looking statements involve material risks and uncertainties.
Many possible factors could affect future results and performance
of MediChem's services and technologies, such that actual results
and performance may differ materially. If MediChem's services
and technologies fail to perform as expected or if there is lower
demand for these than expected, MediChem's financial condition
and operating results may be materially and adversely affected.
MediChem's financial condition and operating results may also
be materially and adversely affected by a number of other factors,
including, but not limited to, adverse changes in competitive
and economic conditions, or difficulties and adverse actions by
third parties and licensors, as well as other risks identified
in MediChem's registration statement on Form S-1 filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.
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