Senesco Technologies Patent-Pending Apoptosis Factor 5A Gene Expressed in Human Heart Tissue.

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 24, 2002

Senesco Technologies, Inc. ("Senesco" or the "Company") (AMEX:SNT) today announced that its patent-pending gene, apoptosis eucaryotic initiation Factor 5A ("Factor 5A"), is expressed in heart tissue from ischemic and non-ischemic patients who have undergone surgery. Ischemia is the restriction of blood supply to the heart that can result in heart attacks and damage to heart tissue. Factor 5A is significantly up-regulated in ischemic heart tissue consistent with its role in regulating cell death through apoptosis (programmed cell death). The discovery was made as part of the Company's preclinical research project being conducted at the University of Colorado under the direction of Charles Dinarello, M.D. This finding supports the Company's premise that Factor 5A plays a role in inducing the premature apoptosis of mammalian cells that is associated with a number of human diseases.

John Thompson, Ph.D., Senesco's Executive Vice President of Research and Development, stated, "These initial data will need to be confirmed with more tissue testing. However, the finding that Factor 5A is so strongly up-regulated in these ischemic heart tissue samples is consistent with our belief that Factor 5A controls major apoptotic pathways in human cells. The data also indicate that apoptosis Factor 5A may be a new target for the development of drugs to control damage to heart tissue in the event of ischemia."

Charles Dinarello, M.D., explained, "These samples have come from patients with heart disease and, therefore, the tissue cells have undergone stress leading to apoptosis."

Bruce Galton, President & CEO of Senesco, added, "Measuring Factor 5A expression in human tissue is an important step in our research program, and it adds new patent application claims to our intellectual property portfolio. We are pleased that the programs we initiated in the last few months are already yielding such findings."

The preclinical heart tissue study will take approximately one year to complete and will include determining if blocking Factor 5A expression reduces cell death in ischemic heart tissue. Senesco is also performing preclinical studies with cancer cells and with a glaucoma model to elucidate further the role of Factor 5A in diseases related to cell death.

About Senesco Technologies, Inc.

Senesco takes its name from the scientific term for the aging of cells: senescence. The Company has developed technology that regulates the onset of cell death. Delaying cell breakdown in plants extends freshness after harvesting, while increasing crop yields, plant size and resistance to environmental stress for flowers, fruits and vegetables. The Company believes that Senesco's technology can be used to develop superior strains of crops by delaying natural plant senescence. Senesco has begun to explore ways to trigger or delay cell death in mammals (apoptosis) to determine if the technology is applicable in human medicine. Senesco partners with leading-edge companies and earns research and development fees for applying its gene-regulating platform technology to enhance its partners' products. Senesco is headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and has research laboratories at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada.

Certain statements included in this press release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results could differ materially from such statements expressed or implied herein as a result of a variety of factors, including, but not limited to: the development of the Company's gene technology; the approval of the Company's patent applications; the successful implementation of the Company's research and development programs and joint ventures, including its license agreements; the acceptance by the market of the Company's products; competition and the timing of projects and trends in future operating performance, as well as other factors expressed from time to time in the Company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). As a result, this press release should be read in conjunction with the Company's periodic filings with the SEC. The forward-looking statements contained herein are made only as of the date of this press release, and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.