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June 14, 2001

Celera to Buy Axys for $174 Million;
Move Bolsters Drug-Production Plans
By Scott Hensley
Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

Celera Genomics Group agreed to buy Axys Pharmaceuticals Inc. for $174 million in stock, a move that advances Celera`s planned transformation into a drug company from a provider of genetic databases.

Celera, Rockville, Md., a unit of Applera Corp., Norwalk, Conn., has sequenced and mapped the genetic instructions for human beings, fruit flies and mice.

Analysts expect the company to record revenue of about $55 million for the fiscal year ending June 30 from subscriptions to the data by researchers in academia and industry.

In the past year, Celera executives have said the company would move beyond subscriptions to comb the human genome itself for insights that would lead to new clinical tests, vaccines, drugs and profits.

The acquisition of Axys would bring a set of important drug-development skills to Celera. "They had exactly what we were looking for: world-class medicinal chemistry and world-class scientists," said J. Craig Venter, Celera`s president and chief scientific officer. "This just saved us five years trying to build it from scratch."

Axys, based in South San Francisco, Calif., discovers and develops new drugs and has research agreements with Merck & Co., Aventis SA, and Bayer AG. In addition, Axys is working on drugs of its own to fight cancer, an area of particular interest to Celera as well.

Analysts said the acquisition seems to be a sensible step in support of Celera`s strategy of expediting drug development. "I believe that Celera has already made a number of discoveries, and they`re now at a point where they had to move from targets to potential drugs," said Winton Gibbons, an analyst with William Blair & Co. LLC, Chicago. He said the purchase price for Axys "seems reasonable."

The deal is expected to close late in the third quarter or early fourth quarter, subject to approval by regulators and Axys shareholders.

Celera shares were up 60 cents at $42.35 in 4 p.m. composite trading on the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday, while Axys shares were up 91 cents at $4.36 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

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Friday June 15, 7:00 am Eastern Time

Press Release

Celera Signs DNA Sciences to Database Subscription Deal

ROCKVILLE, Md. & FREMONT, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)--June 15, 2001-- Celera Genomics (NYSE:CRA - news), an Applera Corporation business, announced today that DNA Sciences, Inc., an integrated genetics discovery company, has signed a multi-year subscription agreement with Celera. DNA Sciences will access the Celera Discovery System(TM) (CDS) to use Celera`s database products, bioinformatics systems, and other discovery tools in their research on the genetic basis of common disease susceptibility and treatment response. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

``As a leader in genetics research ranging from DNA sequencing and genotyping to discovery and development efforts, we are pleased that DNA Sciences recognizes the power of our annotated genomic data and bioinformatics capabilities and has chosen to subscribe to CDS,`` said J. Craig Venter, Ph.D., Celera`s president and chief scientific officer. ``As the amount of genomic data expands and as researchers look for ways to manage and interpret these data, we believe that CDS will continue to be an integral component to biomedical research programs worldwide including Celera`s own internal R&D efforts.``

``We believe that access to the mouse and human genome and SNP databases will be valuable to our discovery of gene variants associated with common disease susceptibility and treatment response,`` said Hugh Y. Rienhoff Jr., M.D., chairman and chief executive officer of DNA Sciences, Inc.

The Celera Discovery System is an integrated, web-based platform that enables users to leverage Celera`s computational tools, super-computing power, and the genomic and biological data to advance the discovery process for researchers worldwide.

``Our scientists will immediately apply these tools to our disease programs, particularly those studies where we have identified regions of interest in the genome,`` said Raymond L. White, Ph.D., chief scientific officer at DNA Sciences. ``This information will make a tremendous contribution to our discovery efforts in common disease susceptibility and response to drug treatment.``

About DNA Sciences

DNA Sciences, Inc. is an integrated genetics discovery company focused on identifying the genetic basis of common disease susceptibility, disease progression and response to drug treatment. DNA Sciences, Inc. is based in Fremont, Calif., and was founded in May 1998. DNA Sciences research is based on the idea that the genetic variants involved in common diseases are of low to moderate penetrance, i.e., only some carriers will develop the disease. Many of these moderately-penetrant gene variants may be difficult to detect using classical methods of discovery. DNA Sciences has developed new methods specifically designed to identify these types of gene variants. These gene variants will help patients and their physicians manage health more effectively through disease risk-reduction, earlier diagnosis and more specific therapies. DNA Sciences company recruits samples for its research through academic and corporate collaborations, as well as the DNA Sciences Gene Trust Project(sm). Visit DNA Sciences website at www.dna.com.

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21.03. 15:38
Celera Genomics geht einkaufen

Wie das Biotechunternehmen Celera Genomics heute bekannt gab, hat man eine Vereinbarung zur Beteiligung an dem japanischen Biotechunternehmen HuBit Genomix Inc. getroffen.

Finanzielle Einzelheiten wurden nicht bekannt gegeben.

HuBit Genomix arbeitet in der Analyse genetischer Variationen, was für Celera ein sehr interessantes Geschäftsfeld darstelle, wie der Unternehmenschef Craig Venter kommentierte.
Außerdem freue sich Celera, mit dem Management von HuBit, in dem einige der besten japanischen Wissenschaftler und Geschäftsleute sitzen, zusammenzuarbeiten.

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30.03. 17:27
Celera Genomics gewinnt mehrere Neukunden

Das Biotechunternehmen Celera Genomics, das von dem "Wunderkind" Craig Venter geleitet wird, hat heute die Unterzeichnung mehrerer langjähriger Abkommen mit der Emory Universität in Georgia und dem Van Andel Institut in Michigan bekannt gegeben , die diesen Einrichtungen ermöglichen, auf Celeras riesige Gendatenbank zuzugreifen.

Der Zugriff solle dabei über das "Celera Discovery System(TM)" erfolgen.

Außerdem wurde berichtet, daß fortan auch die Universität von Texas und das Anderson Krebszentrum in Houston Zugang zu der Celera-Gendatenbank hätten.

Finanzielle Einzelheiten zu den Abkommen wurden nicht bekannt gegeben.

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Celera Genomics to Provide Database Subscription to AMDeC

Deal Includes Researchers at 37 Premier Medical and Research Institutions in N.Y.

ROCKVILLE, Md.--(BW HealthWire)--March 1, 2001--Celera Genomics (NYSE:CRA - news), an Applera Corporation business, announced today it signed a multi-year agreement with AMDeC LLC. This deal allows AMDeC member institutions to access Celera`s database information through its Celera Discovery System(TM). AMDeC is a consortium of thirty-seven of New York`s world-renowned medical schools, academic health institutions and other research institutions whose members include Rockefeller University, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

``With increasing amounts of genomic data being generated and with new findings being published on the human genome, biomedical researchers are now faced with the challenge of how to deal with this wealth of information,`` said J. Craig Venter, Ph.D., Celera`s president and chief scientific officer. ``We are pleased that AMDeC, which represents some of the most esteemed medical and research institutions in the world, has chosen to utilize the advanced tools, software, and data integrated in the Celera Discovery System to enhance their research programs to enable them to uncover potential new therapies to treat human disease.``

``This deal represents another significant milestone in AMDeC`s efforts to ensure that New York`s scientists have affordable access to today`s cutting-edge research technologies, and is a critical step in our efforts to position New York to lead the nation in the new genomics era,`` said Maria K. Mitchell, Ph.D., president of AMDeC.

The Celera Discovery System is a convenient, integrated, web-based discovery system that allows subscribers to use Celera generated databases, additional non-proprietary genome and biological datasets, computational tools and super-computing power to advance the discovery programs of researchers worldwide.

About AMDeC

AMDeC was developed by leaders in New York`s medical and scientific community to establish New York as the international center for biomedical research and technology over the next decade. Through AMDeC, its thirty-seven member institutions are working collaboratively to develop large-scale basic science and clinical research projects, expand New York`s research infrastructure, recruit talented researchers to New York`s scientific institutions, further develop New York`s biotechnology sector, and pursue research-related business opportunities. This deal with Celera represents one of the business arrangements AMDeC has negotiated on behalf of its member institutions that will help to drive down research costs and therefore foster more cost-effective and far-reaching research in New York.



March 1, 2001

Celera, Baylor to Map Rat DNA
Under Joint Research Program
By Scott Hensley
Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal

In the most tangible demonstration so far of collaboration between public and private genome researchers, the National Institutes of Health has awarded $58 million in grants to Baylor College of Medicine and Celera Genomics Group to sequence the genetic code of the laboratory rat.

Under the joint research program, Celera, a unit of Applera Corp., Norwalk, Conn., will receive about $21 million over two years to sequence DNA of the rodent. Baylor`s Human Genome Sequencing Center in Houston will receive about $37 million over the same period to sequence and then assemble the decoded fragments from both groups into a map of the rat genetic code.

This is the first grant by NIH to Celera and marks a turnabout in the relationship between the private and government sectors in DNA sequencing. The head of Celera, J. Craig Venter, left the NIH in 1992 to start a nonprofit research center devoted to genome sequencing free of government bureaucracy. His maverick approach to sequencing was questioned at the time by some, including former colleagues at the NIH. But his approaches have revolutionized and accelerated gene-hunting.

Celera and the publicly funded Human Genome Project competed to map the entire human genome, and simultaneously published their results last month. The deal represents a logical next step in making use of the vast DNA sequencing capacity and expertise that was developed through the public and private efforts.

The rat genome is of particular interest for researchers, especially in the drug industry. "The rat is the premier experimental model system in pharmacology," said Richard Gibbs, director of Baylor`s genome center. He said that sequencing of rat DNA has already begun and that data developed over the next few months are likely to be immediately useful in academia and industry.

The rat genome is virtually the same size as the human genome, and scientists believe both species have the same types of genes. Thus, experiments targeting genes in rats are expected to help researchers understand similar genes in humans.

The collaboration on the rat genome will work to the benefit of public and private researchers, Dr. Venter said, adding, "There are no losers."

Dr. Venter, president and chief scientific officer of Celera, said the drug industry is keen on rat data because the animal is the usual subject for the early toxicology studies needed to evaluate potential medicines. Further, Dr. Venter said, Celera probably wouldn`t have pursued the rat genome alone because of the expense, so a public-private collaboration and NIH grant will "bring in revenues and ... make good utilization of our facilities."

Separately, Celera is expected to announce Thursday a multiyear subscription agreement for the company`s genetic databases with a consortium of 37 medical schools and research centers in New York state. Terms of the deal with the group, New York-based Academic Medicine Development Co., weren`t disclosed. Typically, academic laboratories pay about $10,000 a year for the Celera data.

Rockefeller University, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Columbia University are among the AMDEC members that are expected to sign up. Celera said the agreement contemplates as many as 1,000 laboratories becoming active subscribers. If so, it would represent Celera`s largest contract with academic researchers to date.

Celera`s tracking stock was up $2.35 to $43.50 in 4 p.m. New York Stock Exchange trading Wednesday.