INTERCEPT Plasma Gains Registration in French Official Journal.

CONCORD, Calif. -- Cerus Corporation (NASDAQ:CERS) announced today that the French regulatory agency for medical products, AFSSAPS, has published specifications for the INTERCEPT plasma system in the Official Journal. As a result of this publication, French blood centers are authorized to prepare and sell plasma treated with the INTERCEPT Blood System. While reimbursement pricing also needs to be established, the company understands that French blood centers may now purchase the plasma system in advance of the reimbursement decision.

"We are very pleased to see this Official Journal publication, which completes the regulatory approval process for the INTERCEPT plasma system in France,'' said Claes Glassell, president and chief executive officer of Cerus Corporation. "Cerus can now offer INTERCEPT to French blood centers as a single system to treat both platelet and plasma components intended for transfusion.''

Approximately 4.5 million plasma units for transfusion are collected annually in Europe. Approximately 70% of those undergo pathogen inactivation treatment or quarantine to meet European standards for plasma safety. The INTERCEPT plasma system is designed to offer blood centers a new, more comprehensive solution for meeting regional plasma production standards. It is also designed to provide increased protection to the blood supply from emerging pathogens, such as West Nile virus, Chikungunya virus and Avian influenza. Each INTERCEPT plasma system disposable kit yields three units for transfusion.

The INTERCEPT Blood System

The INTERCEPT Blood System is designed to reduce the risk of transfusion-transmitted diseases by inactivating a broad range of pathogens, such as viruses, bacteria, and parasites that may be present in donated blood intended for transfusion. The system inactivates pathogens in platelets and plasma using the same illumination device, process and active compound. Over 80,000 INTERCEPT platelet kits have been shipped to date, and the technology has been used clinically in over 40 European blood centers. The INTERCEPT Blood System has received CE mark approvals in Europe for both the platelet and plasma systems. A Phase I clinical trial of the INTERCEPT Blood System for red cells is in progress in the United States.

ABOUT CERUS

Cerus Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company that develops and commercializes novel, proprietary products in the fields of blood safety and immunotherapy to provide safer, more effective medical options to patients in areas of substantial unmet medical needs. In the field of blood safety, the company is developing and commercializing the INTERCEPT Blood System, which is based on the company's proprietary Helinx technology. The system is designed to enhance the safety of donated blood components by inactivating viruses, bacteria, parasites and other pathogens, as well as potentially harmful white blood cells. In the field of immunotherapy, the company is employing its proprietary attenuated Listeria vaccine platform to develop a series of novel therapies to treat cancer, and it is applying its proprietary Killed But Metabolically Active technology platform in the research and development of prophylactic and therapeutic vaccines for infectious diseases.

INTERCEPT, INTERCEPT Blood System and Helinx are trademarks of Cerus Corporation.