D-Pharm Establishes U.S. Subsidiary Headed by Albert Lauritano.

Health/Medical Writers and Business Editors

REHOVOT, Israel--(BW HealthWire)--March 9, 2000

D-Pharm Ltd. announced today the incorporation of a subsidiary in the United States to be known as D-Pharm US Inc. (DPI), located in Chapel Hill, NC.

The new company will focus on providing business development as well as other liaison services to D-Pharm and will be headed by Mr. Albert Lauritano. "The establishment of a US presence hallmarks our vision of becoming a major player in the development of fine-tuned pharmaceuticals," commented Dr. Alex Kozak, President and CEO of D-Pharm.

Mr. Lauritano has more than 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry. Prior to joining D-Pharm, he was Vice- President, Business Development at ICAgen Inc., where he established collaborations with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and in- licensed technology from many U.S. universities.

Previously, he served as Vice-President, Business Development at Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. At Amylin, he was involved in product licensing activities with pharmaceutical companies and was responsible for in-licensing new products and represented the company in the Japanese market.

Mr. Lauritano's career was launched at Novo Nordisk Pharmaceuticals where he served in several positions, most recently as Vice- President, New Product Marketing and Business Development. In that capacity, he successfully expanded Novo Nordisk's therapeutic franchises in the U.S. to new therapeutic areas. "We're delighted that Al agreed to join our team," said Dr. Yaffa Beck, D-Pharm's COO and executive vice president. "We expect his extensive experience in both the biotech and pharmaceutical industry will make an important contribution to our business development and spearhead the efforts to globalize our operation."

D-Pharm (www.dpharm.com) is a biopharmaceutical company applying innovative re-engineering technologies to the development of new drugs. These include newly-discovered compounds and improved, patent- protected derivatives of existing drugs for the treatment of neurological disorders, cerebrovascular diseases, inflammation, cancer and AIDS. The company's most advanced product is DP-VPA, which has completed Phase I and is slated to enter Phase II this year. DP-VPA is a safer and more effective chemical derivative of valproic acid (VPA), currently used for the treatment of epilepsy, bipolar disorder and migraine prophylaxis. Another novel compound in D-Pharm's pipeline is DP-b99, a neuroprotective drug based on modulation of cellular divalent ion homeostasis. DP-b99 recently started Phase I clinical studies. Other programs for inflammation, neuro-degeneration, AIDS and cancer are at various stages of development.