Amersham Biosciences To Take Controlling Stake in Cimarron, Leading Informatics Company.

Business Editors and Biotechnology Writers

PISCATAWAY, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 14, 2002

Strategic acquisition strengthens software and

informatics capabilities

Amersham Biosciences, the life sciences business of Amersham plc (LSE:AHM)(NYSE:AHM)(OSE:AHM), today announced agreement to acquire a controlling stake in Cimarron Software, Inc., an informatics company located in Salt Lake City, Utah, which supplies software solutions for life science research.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Amersham Biosciences has an option to acquire up to 100 percent of Cimarron over the next three years, subject to a number of financial milestones being met.

Informatics is the use of computer software and data management systems for the collection, storage and analysis of biological data. It enables researchers to capture, validate and store data from genomics, proteomics, drug screening and all data-generating systems that contribute to the drug discovery process, and to organize this data so that it can be searched or mined more effectively.

Jerry Walker, Vice President Informatics at Amersham Biosciences, said, "We have worked closely with Cimarron since 1996 and are developing a number of state-of-the-art informatics products, branded Scierra(TM), which will be introduced to the market this year. Customers will use the software for sample tracking and analysis in four initial application areas -- proteomics, gene expression analysis, genotyping and DNA sequencing. Having a controlling stake in Cimarron will enable us to more rapidly develop and integrate these products with our platforms and to fully benefit from Cimarron's intellectual property and know-how."

Andrew Carr, President of Amersham Biosciences, said, "Attention is moving from structural biology -- identifying and characterizing genes and proteins, to functional biology -- developing a real understanding of the function of genes and proteins in living organisms and in disease. With this development and the introduction of increasingly high throughput tools for disease research and drug discovery, there is a need for software that manages the significant flow of raw information and transforms it into an organized body of knowledge. A consistent approach to informatics across all these activities will provide the integration and functional analysis customers are looking for."

Amersham Biosciences, the life sciences business of Amersham plc (LSE, NYSE, OSE: AHM), is a world leader in developing and providing integrated systems and solutions for disease research, drug development and manufacture. Our systems are used to uncover the function of genes and proteins, for the discovery and development of drugs and for the manufacture of biopharmaceuticals. The customers for Amersham Biosciences' products and technology are pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and research and academic institutions, principally in North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia. For more information about Amersham Biosciences, please visit www.amershambiosciences.com.

Amersham Biosciences -- enabling molecular medicine

Cimarron Software, Inc. was founded in 1995 by a group from the University of Utah Human Genome Center. Its focus is on laboratory workflow and analysis systems. Cimarron employs an experienced staff of over 60 software designers, programmers, automation engineers, and scientists. Its technical experts develop and deploy custom and off-the-shelf software for clients throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia.

Notes to Editors:

-- Amersham Biosciences reports its business in two segments: discovery systems
and protein separations.

-- The discovery systems segment comprises business areas providing
technologies and services for genomics, proteomics and bioassays to the
research, biotech and pharmaceutical markets. Each of these business areas
includes its own product development function, as well as marketing and product
management, to facilitate bringing innovative products to market quickly. A
shared research function across the discovery systems segment facilitates
maximum return from investment in common technology platforms and a coordinated
approach to functional biology (understanding not only the structure, but the
role of genes and proteins in disease).

-- As integration of information from these technologies becomes increasingly
important to researchers, Amersham Biosciences has created an informatics
function to ensure a consistent and integrated software approach.

-- The protein separations business maintains its own research resources
specializing in technologies to separate and purify biopharmaceuticals in the
production stage and in the development laboratory.

-- All the business areas are supported by service and sales teams based in
over 100 countries, benefiting from Amersham Biosciences' global reach and
international experience.