Celera Genomics and Medarex Establish Therapeutic Antibody Collaboration in Cancer

ROCKVILLE, Md. and PRINCETON, N.J., June 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Celera Genomics , an Applera Corporation business, and Medarex, Inc. today announced the formation of a strategic collaboration to discover and develop fully human antibodies for the potential treatment of multiple cancer indications. The collaboration will encompass the development of therapeutic antibodies against proteins identified by Celera's proteomic research discovery efforts as being over-expressed on the surface of tumor cells and subsequently validated through additional research at Celera. The collaboration combines Celera's ability to discover and validate novel targets for oncology with Medarex's expertise in the development of fully human antibody therapeutics.

Under the collaboration, Celera and Medarex plan to jointly select targets from Celera's portfolio of novel cancer targets. Medarex expects to generate fully human monoclonal antibodies against these targets using its proprietary UltiMAb Human Antibody Development System(R), and the two companies expect to jointly carry out initial validation studies. The two companies plan to alternate the selection of antigen-antibody research programs to further develop and commercialize the antibodies independently. The selecting party will have full development and commercialization rights to products arising from its selected research programs, and the other party will be entitled to receive milestone payments if milestones are achieved and royalties on commercial sales of any such products. The selecting company may develop antibodies generated under this collaboration internally or through external partners. Other financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

"We are pleased with this new collaboration with Medarex as it combines the strength of our novel target discovery and validation with their expertise as a leader in developing human antibody therapeutics," said Kathy Ordonez, President of Celera. "Our proteomics discovery platform continues to demonstrate value in identification of oncology targets for Celera and our partners, and this new relationship with Medarex allows us additional flexibility in advancing our broad pipeline of validated targets for additional future value."

"We are pleased with this opportunity to work with Celera and to pair targets discovered by their proprietary technology with our UltiMAb technology. This collaboration provides us with an opportunity to further expand our base of potential new oncology therapeutics," said Donald L. Drakeman, President and CEO of Medarex.

About Celera Genomics and Applera Corporation

Applera Corporation consists of two operating groups. The Celera Genomics Group uses proprietary genomics and proteomics discovery platforms to develop molecular diagnostic products and to identify and validate novel drug targets. Celera maintains a strategic alliance in molecular diagnostics with Abbott. In addition, Celera is developing new molecular diagnostic and pharmacogenomic assays outside of its alliance with Abbott. Therapeutic antibodies against Celera-discovered drug targets are being advanced through strategic partnerships. The Applied Biosystems Group serves the life science industry and research community by developing and marketing instrument-based systems, consumables, software, and services. Customers use these tools to analyze nucleic acids (DNA and RNA), small molecules, and proteins to make scientific discoveries and develop new pharmaceuticals. Applied Biosystems' products also serve the needs of some markets outside of life science research, which we refer to as "applied markets," such as the fields of: human identity testing (forensic and paternity testing); biosecurity, which refers to products needed in response to the threat of biological terrorism and other malicious, accidental, and natural biological dangers; and quality and safety testing, for example in food and the environment. Applied Biosystems is headquartered in Foster City, CA and reported sales of nearly $1.8 billion during fiscal 2005. Information about Applera Corporation, including reports and other information filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, is available at http://www.applera.com/, or by telephoning 800.762.6923. Information about Celera Genomics is available at http://www.celera.com/.

About Medarex

Medarex is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and potential commercialization of fully human antibody-based therapeutics to treat life-threatening and debilitating diseases, including cancer, inflammation, autoimmune disorders and infectious diseases. Medarex applies its UltiMAb(R) technology and product development and clinical manufacturing experience to generate, support and potentially commercialize a broad range of fully human antibody product candidates for itself and its partners. Thirty-two of these therapeutic product candidates derived from Medarex technology are in human clinical testing or have had INDs submitted for such trials, with five of the most advanced product candidates currently in Phase III clinical trials. Medarex is committed to building value by developing a diverse pipeline of antibody products to address the world's unmet healthcare needs. For more information about Medarex, visit its website at http://www.medarex.com/.

Applera Forward-Looking Statement

Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking. These may be identified by the use of forward-looking words or phrases such as "believe," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "should," "planned," and "potential," among others. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a "safe harbor" for such forward-looking statements. In order to comply with the terms of the safe harbor, Applera Corporation notes that a variety of factors could cause actual results and experience to differ materially from the anticipated results or other expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements. These factors include but are not limited to: (1) unproven ability of Medarex and Celera to successfully manage and operate the collaboration; (2) uncertain suitability of cell surface proteins discovered by Celera as targets for therapeutic antibodies; (3) the risk that products developed under this collaboration, if any, will not advance as anticipated, or may not receive required regulatory clearances or approvals; (4) the uncertainty that any products developed under the collaboration be accepted and adopted by the market, including the risk that these products will not be competitive with products offered by other companies, or that users will not be entitled to receive adequate reimbursement for these products from third party payors such as private insurance companies and government insurance plans; and (5) other factors that might be described from time to time in Applera Corporation's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All information in this press release is as of the date of the release, and Applera does not undertake any duty to update this information, including any forward-looking statements, unless required by law.

Medarex Statement on Cautionary Factors

Except for the historical information presented herein, matters discussed herein may constitute forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements preceded by, followed by, or that include the words "potential"; "believe"; "anticipate"; "intend"; "plan"; "expect"; "estimate"; "could"; "may"; or similar statements are forward-looking statements. Medarex disclaims, however, any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties include risks associated with product discovery and development, uncertainties related to the outcome of clinical trials, slower than expected rates of patient recruitment, unforeseen safety issues resulting from the administration of antibody products in patients, uncertainties related to product manufacturing as well as risks detailed from time to time in Medarex's public disclosure filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2005, and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. There can be no assurance that such development efforts will succeed or that other developed products will receive required regulatory clearance or that, even if such regulatory clearance were received, such products would ultimately achieve commercial success. Copies of Medarex's public disclosure filings are available from its investor relations department.

Medarex(R), the Medarex logo and UltiMAb(R) are registered trademarks of Medarex, Inc. All rights are reserved.

Copyright(C) 2006. Applera Corporation. All rights reserved. Applied Biosystems is a registered trademark and Applera, Celera, and Celera Genomics are trademarks of Applera Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and/or certain other countries.