FibroGen Europe Appoints New Managing Director and Announces Expanded European Patent Position.

Business Editors/Health & Medical Writers

OULU, Finland and SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)-- Mar. 1, 2000

FibroGen Europe Ltd., (a subsidiary of FibroGen, Inc.) today reported the appointment of Juha Koivurinta, Ph.D. to the position of Managing Director. Dr. Koivurinta will assume his new duties in March. The Fibrogen Group also reported today that it has been granted a European patent for its proprietary technology relating to the production of recombinant collagen biomaterials.

Koivurinta Joins FibroGen

Most recently, Dr. Koivurinta served as Vice President of Pharming N.V. and Managing Director of Pharming B.V. He also had responsibility for the Speciality Products/Plasma Products Business Unit of Pharming Group N.V. Additionally, Dr. Koivurinta currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors at Food Files Ltd. Prior to Pharming, Dr. Koivurinta held several management positions at Genencor International including; President of Genencor International Europe, as well as Vice President Business Development and Strategic Planning, Vice President Technology Europe, and Director of Genencor International B.V.

"Dr. Koivurinta's extensive experience in scaling up and commercializing recombinant proteins makes him the logical choice to head up our Finland-based

operations. We believe Dr. Koivurinta will be very valuable to FibroGen Europe as we expand our operations in Finland and work toward our goal of becoming innovators within the biomaterials marketplace," said James Polarek, Ph.D., current Managing Director and Vice President of FibroGen's global collagen development program.

European Patent Granted

FibroGen Europe also announced today that the Company was granted European Patent No. 0625048 for its unique methods, products, and tools for synthesizing, generating, and enhancing recombinant collagen products. FibroGen, Inc. has already been granted similar patents in the U.S. and in Australia.

"Our belief that the FibroGen Group is the leading innovator within the field of recombinant collagens and gelatins is further validated by the European Patent Office's decision on this patent," said Thomas B. Neff, Chief Executive Officer of FibroGen, Inc. "FibroGen's broad intellectual property positions allow the Company a significant lead in the race to commercialize valuable recombinant collagen and gelatin products. Our intellectual property also enables the Company to erect barriers for potential competitors."

FibroGen Europe continues to make significant progress toward the commercialization of human recombinant collagen and gelatin, products with multiple applications in medical device and pharmaceutical product markets that total more than $2 billion ($US) worldwide. FibroGen is currently producing pilot scale batches of the material for evaluation by medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturers worldwide for inclusion in their products and anticipates providing commercial scale quantities manufactured under good manufacturing practice (GMP) guidelines early in 2001.

Currently, manufacturers use collagen and gelatin produced primarily from bovine by-products. Industry executives have long believed that material produced through recombinant technology will result in higher quality, more adaptable and more consistent biomaterials than that produced from bovine-derived matrix. Fear of bovine products was especially high in the E.U. from 1997-1999 due to a rise in the incidence of bovine spongiform encephalitis, the so-called mad cow disease.

FibroGen's recombinant collagens and gelatins address several promising market opportunities. In particular, the use of human recombinant collagen in various medical and pharmaceutical applications has the potential to decrease the number of adverse patient reactions, the incidence of post-procedure inflammation and the potential exposure to disease. The most immediate use of collagen includes cosmetic applications such as in wrinkle removal. Collagen also is a major component of many medical devices, including surgical sealants, hemostats and tissue-engineered products. Gelatin, a derivative of collagen, is used to make vaccine stabilizers, hard and soft capsules, plasma expanders, tablet binders and coatings.

FibroGen Europe Ltd., headquartered in Oulu, Finland, is a private biotech company developing innovative biomaterials. The Company's expertise in extracellular matrix biology, coupled with its substantial intellectual property position, allows FibroGen Europe to assume a leadership position in the recombinant collagen and gelatin marketplaces. FibroGen Europe will focus on supplying its novel biomaterials within European medical device and pharmaceutical industries, as well as commercializing products of its own design. FibroGen Europe is a subsidiary of FibroGen, Inc., San Francisco, California.

FibroGen, Inc. has leveraged its expertise and intellectual property by creating a business model driven by the near-term market introduction of recombinant collagens and gelatins with longer-term drug development programs addressing major unmet medical needs in dermal scarring, deep organ fibrosis and tissue regeneration. Current corporate collaborations include an agreement with Taisho Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. of Japan to develop novel therapeutics to prevent scarring and eventual loss of kidney function, a leading cause of death among patients with diabetes. More information on FibroGen is available at the corporate web site http://www.fibrogen.com.