Bridge Pharmaceuticals Announces Rapid-Turnaround, Flexible-Reporting Occupational Safety Testing Program for Chemical and Pharmaceutical Manufacturers.

GAITHERSBURG, Md. -- Beginning December 1, 2007, Bridge Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Bridge) will offer a new service for obtaining occupational safety studies on compound exposure during chemical manufacture and handling. With faster study turnarounds and flexible data reporting, Bridge will make it easier for companies to guard their employees against chemical exposure hazards.

Before a new compound can be manufactured, regulators require toxicology studies to judge the risks of acute exposure (i.e., exposure lasting a few minutes to a few days) to the new compound. Testing guidelines are set by the U.S. Federal Hazardous Substances Act (FHSA), Department of Transportation, and Environmental Protection Agency, the European Union's Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestries, and Fisheries (MAFF) in Japan. Because of the complexity of these tests and their guidelines, occupational safety chemical exposure studies often take four weeks.

At Bridge's U.S. facility in Gaithersburg, studies performed as non-GLP or fully GLP compliant will have turnarounds no longer than three weeks. Chemical, pharmaceutical, and biotech companies need occupational safety studies for thousands of compounds each year. With so many compounds to evaluate, placing studies with Bridge for whole series of compounds will mean major timesavings without compromising safety.

Bridge will further distinguish itself from competitors by offering customized reporting templates that format data however customers find most convenient. As a result, test results will be easier to interpret. By combining faster studies with more convenient reporting formats, Bridge's new Occupational Safety Program will help companies minimize compound-related occupational safety hazards more quickly and easily.

Bridge's Occupational Safety Testing Program will be open to customers worldwide. Following inauguration of the program in Gaithersburg, Bridge will offer the same services in its China facility in Beijing beginning in early 2008.

Bridge Overview

Bridge is one of the first preclinical contract research organization (CRO) to provide US-level drug development services in both the US and Asia. Bridge is headquartered in the United States with laboratories in Gaithersburg, Maryland and Beijing, China. Bridge focuses on providing cost-effective, FDA compliant drug development services for pharmaceutical, biotech and government clients. Bridge's current capabilities in preclinical drug development include GLP compliant toxicology, safety pharmacology, pathology and bioanalytical services. For more information, visit http://www.bridgecro.com or contact [e-mail].