AVI BioPharma Presents Positive Results With NEUGENE Antisense Drugs At the American Association for Cancer Research Meeting.

PORTLAND, Ore. -- AVI BioPharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: AVII), today announced that it will present preclinical data from studies evaluating the effectiveness of AVI's NEUGENE(R) antisense drugs at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) in Anaheim, Calif. The presentations will discuss application of NEUGENE drugs for treating lung and prostate cancers, as well as a novel approach for enhancing the effectiveness of radiation to kill cancer cells.

"Our NEUGENE antisense technology is a proprietary drug platform that allows us to rationally design drugs that precisely target and block a specific gene in the body," said Patrick L. Iversen, Ph.D., senior vice president of research and development at AVI. "By developing drugs that selectively shut down the genes necessary for cancer cell survival, our goal is to produce a more targeted, and less toxic, cancer treatment for patients."

Two of the presentations, "C-myc antisense phosphorodiamidate mopholino oligomer inhibits lung metastasis in a syngeneic lung tumor model," and "WT1: a novel target for antisense mediated prostate tumor therapy," evaluate studies done by AVI scientists in collaboration with Oregon Health & Science University. In the first study, findings indicate that AVI-4126, a NEUGENE antisense oligomer inhibiting c-myc, decreases the formation of lung metastasis in an aggressive lung tumor model. AVI-4126 has been studied in other cancer settings, because c-myc overexpression has been correlated with cancer progression and chemotherapy resistance in several solid tumor models. In the second study, inhibition of WT1 was achieved using an antisense oligomer. This inhibition led to reduced tumor volume in a prostate cancer model.

Finally, a presentation titled "Inhibition of XIAP, an anti-apoptotic molecular target potentiates radiation-induced cell death in cancer," evaluates the novel approach of using NEUGENE drugs to target the gene XIAP, which has been found to protect cancer cells from the effects of radiation. Radiation therapy plays an important role in the management of a majority of cancers, and resistance to radiotherapy can be a significant treatment hurdle. Study results suggest that NEUGENES produce a significant decrease in cell viability along with a specific decrease in XIAP levels in cells pretreated with a NEUGENE designed to inhibit XIAP in a prostate cancer model.

The three presentations are available on the AACR Web site at http://www.aacr.org.

About AVI BioPharma

AVI BioPharma develops therapeutic products for the treatment of life-threatening diseases using third-generation NEUGENE(R) antisense drugs. AVI's lead NEUGENE antisense compound is designed to target cell proliferation disorders, including cardiovascular restenosis, cancer and polycystic kidney disease. In addition to targeting specific genes in the body, AVI's antiviral program uses NEUGENE antisense compounds to combat disease by targeting single-stranded RNA viruses, including West Nile virus, hepatitis C virus, and dengue virus and Ebola virus. More information about AVI is available on the company's Web site at http://www.avibio.com.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: The statements that are not historical facts contained in this release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the results of research and development efforts, the results of preclinical and clinical testing, the effect of regulation by the FDA and other agencies, the impact of competitive products, product development, commercialization and technological difficulties, and other risks detailed in the company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings.