[0] Lynx Announces its Immunology Focus Program.

Health, Science & Business Editors

HAYWARD, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)--May 9, 2000

Lynx Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: LYNX) announced today the formal launch of its biology-based programs.

The initial program is in the area of immunopathology (Immunology Focus Program), and is being carried out through Lynx's wholly owned subsidiary company, Lynx Therapeutics GmbH (Lynx GmbH), of Heidelberg, Germany. The intention of the program is to exploit Lynx's technologies to discover and commercialize diagnostic and disease target opportunities in this important area of biology and medicine.

Immune disorders play a part in many chronic diseases for which there are large unmet medical needs. Improperly activated immune cells can attack normal tissues, resulting in autoimmune diseases, or respond to allergens, causing allergic reactions. Therefore, suppression of improper immune activations could result in preventions and therapies for these diseases. Examples of autoimmune diseases include diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and psoriasis. Examples of allergy include asthma, eczema and hay fever. In addition, the vast majority of organ transplantations require immunosuppression to prevent rejections. Taken together, the immunosuppressant market is expected to increase by 40% annually, with projected revenues to exceed $11 billion by 2005 in the U.S. alone.

Lynx GmbH's initial experiments in the last few months have led to its filing patent claims in the methods for identifying genes related to the activation and suppression of immune responses. The identification of such genes may help to elucidate potential new drug targets and, thus, may contribute to finding ways to manipulate immune dysfunction in patients. Furthermore, these identified genes may be used as diagnostic markers to assess the extent of immunosuppression. At present, Lynx's Megasort(TM) and MPSS(R) technologies are being applied for the in-depth analysis of immunopathological disorders.

To support the research in its Immunology Focus Program, Lynx GmbH has recently signed a comprehensive collaboration agreement with the Institute for Immunology of the Heidelberg University Medical Center, one of the largest clinically-oriented immunology institutes in Europe, pursuing research projects in basic cellular immunology and in clinical immunology of chronic inflammatory diseases.

"An integral part of Lynx's strategy is to exploit the unique power of our technologies," said Dr. Norrie Russell, President and CEO of Lynx. "To that end, Lynx GmbH should deliver exciting value-added opportunities for us. We are pleased to be formally launching this initiative as an important element of the enactment of our business strategy."

"The collaboration with the Institute for Immunology provides our Immunology Focus Program with the necessary world class academic support. Due to the relationship of this institute with the Heidelberg University Medical Center, we have the opportunity to apply Lynx's technologies to the complete spectrum of clinical immune disorders," noted Dr. Michael Kramer, Managing Director of Lynx GmbH.

Dr. Stefan Meuer, Professor and Chairman of the Institute for Immunology of the Heidelberg University Medical Center, stated, "Despite the enormous socio-economic relevance of diseases that are caused by dysfunctions of the immune system, there is a huge deficit in appropriate diagnostic and therapeutic tools. To date, none of these chronic diseases can be cured and, therefore, require lifelong treatment. Through their ability to generate genomic data in a rapid and comprehensive manner, I expect Lynx's technologies to provide important information that will advance our understanding of the molecular complexity of deviated immune responses in clinical disease and, thus, may contribute to the development of novel diagnostics and therapeutics.

Lynx is a leader in the development and application of novel technologies for the discovery of gene expression patterns and genomic variations important to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and agricultural industries. These technologies are based on the Megaclone(TM) technology, Lynx's unique and proprietary cloning procedure, which transforms a sample containing millions of DNA molecules into one made up of millions of micro-beads, each of which carries approximately 100,000 copies of one of the DNA molecules in the sample. MegacloneTM technology is the foundation for Lynx's analytical applications, including: Massively Parallel Signature Sequencing, or MPSS(R), technology, which provides gene sequence information; Megasort(TM) technology, which provides gene expression information; and Megatype(TM) technology, which is expected to provide single nucleotide polymorphism, or SNP, disease- or trait-association information. For more information, visit Lynx's web site at www.lynxgen.com.

Statements included in this press release that are not historical in nature, are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company cautions readers that forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements due to the risks and factors identified from time to time in the Company's reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1999.