PRESS RELEASE: Fundamental Applied Biology, Inc. Completes $21 Million Series B Financing

Fundamental Applied Biology, Inc. Completes $21 Million Series B Financing
Dan Gold, Ph.D., Joins as Chief Executive Officer

MENLO PARK, Calif., Dec. 10 -- Fundamental Applied Biology, Inc. (FAB), a privately held biotechnology company, announced the completion of a $21 million Series B financing. Prior investor SV Life Sciences (SVLS) led the round followed by co-lead investor Alta Partners. The proceeds from the financing will be used to develop FAB's novel, cell-free protein synthesis technology to produce biologic drugs and vaccines for unmet medical needs. David Mack, Ph.D., Director at Alta Partners has joined Michael Ross, Ph.D., Managing Partner at SVLS, as a member of the Board of Directors.

Cell-free technology was designed to overcome the limitations of cell-based production of proteins that are often subject to degradation, low yields and purification difficulties, or are not therapeutically effective because of structural deficiencies due to poor folding.

FAB's proprietary cell free protein synthesis technology was developed by James R. Swartz, Sc.D., a leading expert in the field of cell-free protein synthesis. Dr. Swartz holds the Leland T. Edwards Professorship in the School of Engineering at Stanford University and is a Professor in the Departments of Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering with over twenty years of industrial experience at Eli Lilly and Genentech prior to joining Stanford in 1998. Dr. Swartz serves on the Board of Directors of the company.

FAB also announced that Daniel Gold, Ph.D. has joined the company as Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Gold has over twenty years of biopharmaceutical process development and manufacturing experience. He joins FAB from Human Genome Sciences (HGS) where he was Senior Vice President, Manufacturing Alliances, and Senior Vice President of Pharmaceutical Operations. Prior to joining HGS, Dr. Gold was Vice President, Process Development and Chief Scientific Officer at Diosynth-RTP, Inc., where he directed the manufacturing of fifteen protein-based therapeutics, leading to IND, BLA or NDA submission and approval. Dr. Gold also held scientific and management positions in process development and manufacturing at Genencor, Genentech and Khepri Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Gold received his Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in Biochemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

"The confidence of our investors, Alta Partners and SV Life Sciences, provides further validation for the therapeutic and commercial potential of this unique and exciting technology," said Dr. Gold. "Our goals are both to develop our own propriety products and to collaborate with other biopharmaceutical companies to develop high-quality protein-based drugs. I am happy to join FAB at this exciting time in the company's development."

Dr. Michael Ross stated, "SVLS is pleased to help advance the development of FAB's cell-free technology to bring novel biologics to market for the treatment of unmet medical needs. This groundbreaking approach could provide protein-based drugs and vaccines that are difficult or impossible to synthesize, increasing their therapeutic and commercial viability."

"The current industry standard of cell-based protein synthesis and purification may limit the types of protein drugs than can be made," said Dr. Mack. "FAB's technology focuses on maximizing certain biochemical reactions, eliminating others, while introducing novel pathways. This presents exciting potential for the commercialization of novel protein pharmaceuticals."

About Fundamental Applied Biology

Fundamental Applied Biology (FAB), Inc. is creating opportunities for the development of novel protein-based therapeutics and vaccines using a proprietary cell-free protein synthesis technology. Cell-free technology has the potential to overcome many of the significant limitations associated with using whole mammalian and bacterial cells for making protein-based biologics. FAB's goal is to become the leader in the field of cell-free protein synthesis by developing its own and collaborative therapies that will provide improved clinical outcomes for patients.

About SV Life Sciences

SV Life Sciences is a venture capital firm providing financing to businesses at all stages of development across the human life sciences sector, including biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and services. SV Life Sciences currently advises or manages five funds -- SV Life Sciences Funds I, II, III and IV and International Biotechnology Trust plc (Ticker: IBT.L) with capital of approximately $1.6 billion. http://www.svlsa.com

About Alta Partners

Alta Partners is a San Francisco-based venture capital firm focused on life sciences investing. Founded in 1996, the firm currently manages $2 billion in committed capital through eight venture fund programs. Alta invests in life sciences companies across the development continuum, from company formation to later-stage opportunities, and has funded more than 120 companies in the sector to date. http://www.altapartners.com