Dr Alan Lewis joins Biotica Board

Cambridge, UK: 26 May 2009

Biotica Technology Ltd, the leader in discovery of polyketide therapeutics, today announced the appointment of Dr Alan Lewis as a Non-Executive Director with immediate effect. Dr. Lewis, a highly regarded biotech and pharmaceutical industry veteran, brings his company-building, deal-making and drug development experience to Biotica’s board as the company continues to establish its position as one of the UK’s leading biotechnology companies.

Dr Alan Lewis is the President & CEO of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.  Prior to joining the JDRF in January 2009, Dr. Lewis was CEO of the San Diego biotech company, Novocell.  Previously he served as President of the Signal Division of Celgene, a biotech company focused on drug and cell therapies for inflammatory diseases and cancer, where he managed a fully integrated target and drug discovery effort consisting of 150 staff, including scientists, project planning, intellectual property, and business development.  Dr. Lewis was President and CEO of Signal Pharmaceuticals until its acquisition by Celgene.  He also was Vice President of Research at Wyeth Laboratories.

Born in Wales, Dr. Lewis has degrees in physiology, biochemistry and pharmacology from Southampton University and the University of Wales in Cardiff.  He did postgraduate work at the University of Guelph, Ontario, and Yale University.  He has published over 120 full manuscripts, and written and edited seven books and some 100 abstracts.

Dr. Edward Hodgkin, CEO of Biotica, said, “We are delighted that Alan has agreed to join our Board. His track record of nurturing innovation to bring therapies to the clinic, implementing innovative partnerships and achieving significant returns for investors, makes him a tremendous addition to the Biotica team.”

Dr. Lewis commented, “I am very impressed by Biotica’s ability to discover a broad range of drug candidates using its proprietary technology.  The company has achieved a high level of productivity with a lean business model and is pioneering a new route to drug candidates that other companies cannot emulate.”

At the same time, Biotica announces that Marc Schneidman, Managing Director at Aquilo Partners (San Francisco), has been elected Chairman, and that Dr. Mike Hayes and Dr. Barrie Ward have resigned as Non-Executive Directors.  Dr. Hayes had been a Director since 2000 and Chairman since 2003, and Dr. Ward a Director since 2004.  Both have played an important role in guiding the company to its current position of strength.  “We thank Mike for his long service and many contributions to Biotica, including serving as Executive and Non-Executive Chairman,” commented Marc Schneidman, “and Barrie for his productive work as a member of the board.”