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| |  ABS Issued U.S. Patent for Method of Diagnosing Alzheimer's Disease COPIAGUE, N.Y., Feb. 20, 1996 -- American Biogenetic Sciences, Inc. (ABS) (Nasdaq: MABXA), a global pharmaceutical research and development company, announced today the issuance of U.S. Patent No. 5,492,812 for a "Diagnostic Method for Alzheimer's Disease by Screening for Tau-Peptides in the Blood of a Patient." ABS is the worldwide exclusive licensee of the patent issued to Trinity College (Dublin, Ireland), which covers a non-invasive blood test to detect Alzheimer's disease. In announcing the issuance and licensing of the patent, Alfred J. Roach, Chairman and CEO, stated that the Tau-Peptide Screening Test (tPST(TM)) "strengthens our neurobiology program, and we look to form alliances with other companies in this field. This is an example of how the ABS Global Scientific Network can be utilized to identify and develop more effective diagnostic and treatment products." Alzheimer's disease, a degenerative neurological disorder that afflicts an estimated 4 million Americans, results in the progressive deterioration of mental abilities (dementia). Other than post mortem examination, there is no routine, definitive diagnostic procedure available. Therefore, clinical diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease is currently made only after other causes of dementia have been excluded -- a process that involves expensive and prolonged diagnostic procedures. According to the inventor of the tPST, H. Paul Voorheis, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Biochemistry at Trinity College, his new immunologic blood test can make a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease simply, and without risk or discomfort to the patient. The tPST detects a tau- peptide fragment(s), which is released into the blood by degenerating neurons in Alzheimer's disease sufferers. Dr. Voorheis has been able to detect tau-peptide in early Alzheimer's disease and believes that the tPST is as sensitive to the early stages of Alzheimer's disease as to later stages. In addition, Dr. Voorheis noted that because very little tau-peptide is found in normal blood, he believes that the tPST will prove to be both a sensitive and highly specific test for Alzheimer's disease and that, when the tPST is fully developed and routinely available, it will provide a safe and cost-effective diagnosis of the disorder. Results from a controlled, double blind clinical study comparing the levels of tau-peptide fragments in the blood of non-Alzheimer's and Alzheimer's disease patients indicate that tPST can detect the disease with high accuracy. Therapeutic Agent Being Developed for Alzheimer's In collaboration with University College, Dublin, and the Free University of Berlin, ABS is developing neuroprotective agents that readily penetrate the blood-brain barrier. These small molecules have demonstrated, in animal studies, memory enhancing properties and the ability to arrest the deterioration of nerve cells, a feature that underlies conditions such as Alzheimer's disease. Pre-clinical studies are underway and patent applications are pending. By the year 2000, the world's population is predicted to exceed 6 billion people, of whom 1 billion will be over age 60. Thus, without more effective diagnostics and therapeutics, the number of patients with neurodegenerative disorders requiring hospitalization, institutionalization and/or home care will place an enormous burden on society. American Biogenetic Sciences, Inc. is a global biopharmaceutical and diagnostic company which conducts research and development through its Global Scientific Network(R) in the U.S., Europe, Israel and Russia. ABS seeks to discover and commercialize products in the fields of cardiology and neurobiology. The Company's enabling technology includes a patented Antigen-Free Mouse Colony which allows for the generation of highly specific monoclonal antibodies that cannot be acquired from conventional systems. CONTACT: Leonard W. Suroff, Shareholder Relations of American Biogenetic Sciences, 516-789-2600; or Thomas Redington of Redington, Inc., 203-222-7399, or 212-926-1733 (MABXA)
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