Pieris and Daiichi Sankyo Sign Therapeutic Collaboration to Develop Anticalin(R) Therapeutics

By Pieris Ag, PRNE
Monday, April 11, 2011

FREISING, Germany, April 12, 2011 - Pieris AG announced today the signature of a collaboration and license
agreement with Daiichi Sankyo Company Limited (hereinafter Daiichi Sankyo;
headquartered in Chuo Ward, Tokyo, TSE 4568), under which Pieris will apply
its proprietary Anticalin scaffold technology to discover novel Anticalins
against two Daiichi Sankyo targets. Upon discovery and achievement by Pieris
of early preclinical development milestones for lead Anticalin drug
candidates, Daiichi Sankyo will assume responsibility for further development
and marketing of the Anticalin compounds.

"Pieris stands in a unique position as an enabling company in the
targeted therapeutics space when traditional biological approaches are
untenable," noted Stephen Yoder, CEO of Pieris. "Our deal with Daiichi Sankyo
demonstrates yet again the high value of the Anticalin technology and we're
extremely proud to count Daiichi Sankyo among the growing list of industry
leaders who are our collaboration partners."

Under the terms of the agreement, Pieris will receive more than EUR 7
million
upon signing of the collaboration agreement for the two targets. In
addition, Pieris will receive committed research funding and payments for the
achievement of research, preclinical, regulatory and commercial milestones.
The partnership could encompass for Pieris more than EUR 100 million per
target in license fees, funding and milestones provided the nominated
Anticalin achieves full commercialization, and tiered, mid- to mid-high
single digit royalties on sales from marketed Anticalins resulting from the
collaboration. Daiichi Sankyo will have exclusive marketing rights worldwide
for all such products.

Pieris' proprietary Anticalin technology platform creates next generation
targeted therapeutics and addresses targets in ways that traditional
technologies such as monoclonal antibodies cannot. Anticalins are
recombinantly engineered lipocalins, endogenous low-molecular weight human
proteins that naturally bind, store and transport a wide spectrum of
molecules. To obtain a specific Anticalin, Pieris applies its deep protein
engineering know-how to select drug candidates from its suite of rationally
designed proprietary Anticalin libraries.

About Daiichi Sankyo

Daiichi Sankyo Group is dedicated to the creation and supply of
innovative pharmaceutical products to address the diversified, unmet medical
needs of patients in both mature and emerging markets. While maintaining its
portfolio of marketed pharmaceuticals for hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and
bacterial infections, the Group is engaged in the development of treatments
for thrombotic disorders and focused on the discovery of novel oncology and
cardiovascular-metabolic therapies. Furthermore, the Daiichi Sankyo Group has
created a "Hybrid Business Model," which will respond to market and customer
diversity and optimise growth opportunities across the value chain. For more
information, please visit: www.daiichisankyo.com.

About Pieris

Pieris AG is an independent, clinical-staged biotechnology company
advancing its proprietary Anticalin(r) technology to create safer, more
efficacious and more convenient protein therapeutics. Exclusive to Pieris,
Anticalin-based drugs promise to address high-unmet medical needs and expand
the therapeutic potential of current targeted approaches. Pieris' pipeline
ranges from its Phase I compound, PRS-050 (anti-VEGF, oncology), to multiple
Anticalins in preclinical development. Not including today's announcement,
the company has three ongoing collaborations: a drug discovery partnership
with Takeda San Francisco; a multi-year, multi-target agreement with
Sanofi-Aventis and Sanofi Pasteur (EUROMEXT: SAN and NYSE: SNY); and a deal
with Allergan, Inc. (NYSE: AGN), focusing on novel treatments for eye
diseases. Privately held, Pieris has been funded by premier
biotechnology-focused venture capital, including lead investors OrbiMed
Advisors and Global Life Science Ventures. For more information, please
visit: www.pieris-ag.com.

    For more information, please contact:

    Stephen Yoder, CEO
    Pieris AG
    +49(0)8161-1411-400
    info@pieris-ag.com

For more information, please contact: Stephen Yoder, CEO, Pieris AG, +49(0)8161-1411-400, info at pieris-ag.com

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