SAN DIEGO, Oct 23, 2006 (BUSINESS WIRE) —ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: ACAD) today announced that itwill provide initial seed funding to help establish AbbeyPharmaceuticals, a startup biotechnology company focused onmedications for substance abuse. The new company will be led by MarkR. Brann, Ph.D., who has resigned from his position as President andChief Scientific Officer and as a member of the Board of Directors ofACADIA to assume the position of Chief Executive Officer of Abbey.Abbey will seek external equity financing, after which it intends tocollaborate with ACADIA to gain access to selected drug discoveryassets that may have utility in the field of substance abuse. ACADIAhas agreed to increase its investment to an aggregate of $1 millionupon Abbey's completion of an external equity financing.
"We are excited to work with Mark in the formation of this newcompany that has the potential to play an important role in the fieldof substance abuse therapeutics," said Uli Hacksell, Ph.D., ChiefExecutive Officer of ACADIA. "While ACADIA's discovery platform maygenerate novel drug candidates with applications in substance abuse,this indication is outside of our strategic focus and we believe itcan best be pursued by an independent and focused effort. Markexhibits a passion for this area of research and I look forward to theopportunity for ACADIA to collaborate with Mark and Abbey."
George Koob, Ph.D., an internationally recognized authority in thefield of substance abuse, will collaborate with Dr. Brann in formingAbbey. Dr. Koob is a Professor at Scripps Research Institute andDirector of The Pearson Center for Alcoholism and Addiction Research.
"Science has paved the way for breakthrough therapeuticinterventions in the field of substance abuse, but significantpharmaceutical commitment to the area has only recently emerged," saidLeslie L. Iversen, Ph.D., Chairman of ACADIA's Board of Directors."Having known both Mark and George throughout their scientificcareers, I believe that together they can uniquely advance this highlyunderserved therapeutic area. On behalf of the board and employees ofACADIA, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mark for hisvast contributions as ACADIA's founder, President, CSO, and boardmember. We wish him well in his new role at Abbey and we look forwardto the potential for ACADIA to collaborate with this organizationfocused on the substance abuse area."
"I am very excited to form a company committed to delivering newtherapeutic options to treat substance abuse," said Mark R. Brann,Ph.D., Abbey's Chief Executive Officer. "Abbey is poised to pursuethis specialty CNS area, where breakthroughs in science can bedirectly linked to solving major unmet medical needs in largepotential markets. I am very proud of the team, technology andexciting clinical programs that we have built at ACADIA. With itsstrong senior management bolstered by the recent addition of Dr. RogerMills as Executive Vice President, Development, I believe ACADIA iswell positioned to execute on its rich clinical pipeline."
About ACADIA Pharmaceuticals
ACADIA is a biopharmaceutical company utilizing innovativetechnology to fuel drug discovery and clinical development of noveltreatments for central nervous system disorders. ACADIA currently hasfive Phase II-stage clinical programs as well as a portfolio ofpreclinical and discovery assets directed at diseases with large unmetmedical needs, including schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease, sleepmaintenance insomnia, and neuropathic pain. All of the drug candidatesin ACADIA's product pipeline emanate from discoveries made using itsproprietary drug discovery platform. ACADIA's corporate headquartersis located in San Diego, California and it maintains research anddevelopment operations in both San Diego and Malmo, Sweden.
About Abbey Pharmaceuticals
Abbey Pharmaceuticals is a newly formed, privately heldbiotechnology company focused on medications for substance abuse.Abbey is building fully integrated clinical and preclinical programsthat focus on CNS targets that have been well validated clinically.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this press release that are not strictly historicalin nature are forward-looking statements. These statements include butare not limited to statements related to the progress of and benefitsto be derived from ACADIA's drug discovery and development programs,Abbey's programs, and future collaborations with and funding of AbbeyPharmaceuticals. These statements are only predictions based oncurrent information and expectations and involve a number of risks anduncertainties. Actual events or results may differ materially fromthose projected in any of such statements due to various factors,including the risks and uncertainties inherent in drug discovery,development and commercialization, collaborations with others, andoperating start-up companies, including obtaining third-party funding.For a discussion of these and other factors, please refer to ACADIA'sannual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005 aswell as other subsequent filings with the Securities and ExchangeCommission. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on theseforward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof.This caution is made under the safe harbor provisions of the PrivateSecurities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All forward-lookingstatements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionarystatement and ACADIA undertakes no obligation to revise or update thispress release to reflect events or circumstances after the datehereof.
SOURCE: ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc.
ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Lisa Barthelemy, Director, Investor Relations
Uli Hacksell, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer
858-558-2871
Abbey Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Mark R. Brann, Ph.D.
858-229-3980