The National
Spinal Cord
Injury Association

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New Technology Contract Awarded to Alexion Pharmaceuticals

NEW HAVEN, Conn., Oct. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALXN) today announced that it has been awarded a three year $2 million grant from the Advanced Technology Program (ATP), an innovative Department of Commerce technology initiative administered by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Granted in response to a proposal entitled "A Xenogeneic Solution to Spinal Cord Injury," the award will support the Company's R&D Program to develop genetically engineered pig tissues to treat patients with severe, debilitating spinal cord injuries. This represents the third ATP/NIST grant won by Alexion. The three grants totaling $6 million in funding are all in support of the firm's xenotransplantation program.

"This award will assist us in further developing our preclinical program aimed at the development of genetically engineered tissues to replace cells injured in patients who have suffered traumatic spinal cord injuries," said Leonard Bell, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Alexion. "We are very encouraged by these further endorsements of our proprietary technological approach and progress-to-date by the respected group of scientific and business leaders who served as reviewers for the competing ATP grant proposals."

According to the National Spinal Cord Injury Association, there are approximately 8,000 new spinal cord injury patients in the U.S. each year and at least 200,000 patients have suffered a traumatic spinal cord injury. Most spinal cord injury patients are young adults and slightly over one-half of patients suffer the most severe form of non-fatal spinal injury, quadriplegia, or loss of use of all four limbs.

The Advanced Technology Program provides cost-shared funding to industry for selected R&D projects with the potential to spark important, broad-based economic benefits for the United States. ATP awards are made on the basis of a rigorous competitive review considering the scientific, technical and business merit of each proposal and its potential broad benefits to the United States economy.

Since August of 1995, Alexion and United States Surgical Corporation have been engaged in a collaborative program to develop a portfolio of xenotransplant products worldwide.

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is engaged in the development of selective immunotherapeutic drugs that generally are designed to inhibit the disease-causing segments of the immune system while preserving the disease-preventing aspects of the immune system. The Company is developing three technology platforms: C5 Complement Inhibitors and Apogen T-Cell Therapeutics which together target severe cardiovascular and autoimmune disorders; and xenografts for organ transplants.

This news release contains forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to certain factors which may cause Alexion's plans to differ or results to vary from those expected including unexpected preclinical or clinical results, the need for additional research and testing, delays in manufacturing, access to capital and funding, delays in development of commercial relationships and a variety of risks set forth from time to time in Alexion's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including but not limited to the risks discussed in Alexion's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended July 31, 1997. Alexion undertakes no obligation to publicly release results of any of these forward-looking statements which may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.  
 

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