Merck Serono and Fast Forward, LLC Announce First Results of Their Collaboration to Advance Drug Development in Multiple Sclerosis

Merck Serono and Fast Forward provide funding of almost $1.5 million to accelerate development of innovative drugs to repair and protect the nervous system in MS

GENEVA, Switzerland, May 5, 2010 - Merck Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany,
and Fast Forward, LLC, a not-for-profit organization established by the
US-based National Multiple Sclerosis Society to accelerate the development of
discoveries into new or improved therapies, today announced the first four
recipients of funding designed to speed research advances in mutually
selected high potential areas of multiple sclerosis (MS) research. The awards
total nearly $1.5 million. Two are allocated to development programs which
are available to for-profit entities and two are allocated to innovation
projects, available to university-based investigators and seed-stage
for-profit entities. Merck Serono and Fast Forward are currently soliciting
proposals (Request for Proposals - RFPs) for the next round of funding
available through this collaboration. (For more information please visit:
www.nationalmssociety.org/fast-forward/index.aspx)

The focus of the first RFPs, issued in 2009, was central
nervous system (CNS) neuroprotection and/or repair strategies; these priority
areas were determined by a joint steering committee (JSC) comprising Fast
Forward staff and representatives from Merck Serono. As part of the current
collaboration agreement with Fast Forward, Merck Serono provided the majority
of funding for the research awards, with Fast Forward contributing 10 percent
of the financing to round out the awards disseminated from each of the two
funds. The following are the recipients from the Accelerating Development
fund:

Innate Therapeutics Limited, Auckland, New Zealand (Project
Director - Simon Wilkinson) will receive $550,000 over 15 months to conduct a
phase IIa clinical trial in patients with progressive forms of MS using
MIS416, a naturally occurring agent derived from bacteria.

Cognosci Inc., Research Triangle Park, NC (Project Director -
Feng Qiao Li, PhD) will receive $330,000 over 12 months for the efficacy
testing of COG112, a molecule that mimics actions of the cholesterol
transporting protein Apolipoprotein E (ApoE). In the funded studies, the
company will evaluate the ability of COG112 to promote myelin repair in the
central nervous system (CNS) in laboratory models of MS.

Additionally, the following organizations will receive
financing from the Accelerating Innovation Fund:

CenTRion Therapeutics Limited, Greenwich, UK, (Project
Director - Michael Leach, PhD) will receive $275,000 over 12 months for
studies with compounds, related to lamotrigine, an approved epilepsy therapy,
which some studies suggest also can protect nerve cells from damage. CenTrion
will conduct research to determine the safety and efficacy of its original
neuroprotective compounds in laboratory models of MS.

Oregon Health Science University, Portland, OR, (Project
Director - Lawrence Sherman, PhD) will receive $275,000 for the screening and
efficacy of small molecule inhibitors of hyaluronidase, an enzyme that
dissolves hyaluronic acid - a complex sugar molecule that accumulates in MS
lesions. Dr. Sherman's group has found that by-products resulting from
breakdown of hyalunoric acid prevent myelin repair. This project will assess
whether myelin repair blockage can be overcome by inhibiting the activity of
hyaluronidase.

"We are pleased to announce the 2009 funding recipients who
will work to advance promising early- and late-stage projects in MS that
could ultimately help patients," said Bernhard Kirschbaum, PhD, Executive
Vice President, Global Research and Development at Merck Serono. "Merck
Serono is committed to advancing scientific and medical knowledge and to
furthering key research that has the potential to help people living with
MS."

"The promise of current research to change the MS landscape is
exciting, and it fuels the collaboration between Fast Forward and Merck
Serono in advancing science in key areas of focus to speed the development of
new therapies and innovations to benefit people living with MS. We are proud
to be able to provide resources for those working to end MS and look forward
to the seeing the results stemming from these projects," said Dr. Timothy
Coetzee, President of Fast Forward.

Merck Serono and Fast Forward entered into a two-year
worldwide agreement in March 2009 to accelerate the development of treatments
for MS. The collaboration, which supports early-stage clinical development
projects with biotech companies as well as programs with individual
researchers and academic institutions, has the potential to be extended for
an additional three years. The RFP process for 2010 is currently underway
with a goal of approving the next round of recipients expected in December.
(For more information please visit:
www.nationalmssociety.org/fast-forward/index.aspx)

About multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic, inflammatory condition
of the central nervous system and is the most common, non-traumatic,
disabling neurological disease in young adults. It is estimated that
approximately two million people have MS worldwide. While symptoms can vary,
the most common symptoms of MS include blurred vision, numbness or tingling
in the limbs and problems with strength and coordination. The relapsing forms
of MS are the most common.

About Fast Forward, LLC

Fast Forward, LLC, established by the National Multiple
Sclerosis Society as part of a comprehensive approach to MS research and
treatment, focuses on speeding promising research discoveries towards
commercial drug development. Fast Forward accelerates the development of
treatments for MS by connecting university-based MS research with
private-sector drug development and by funding small
biotechnology/pharmaceutical companies to develop innovative new MS therapies
and repurpose FDA-approved drugs as new treatments for MS. For more
information, please visit www.fastforward.org.

About MS and the U.S. based National Multiple Sclerosis Society

MS is a chronic, unpredictable neurological disease that
affects the central nervous system. It is thought to be an autoimmune
disorder, meaning the immune system incorrectly attacks healthy tissue.
Symptoms may be mild, such as numbness in the limbs, or severe, such as
paralysis or loss of vision. These problems may be permanent or may come and
go. The U.S.-based National MS Society addresses the challenges of each
person affected by MS by funding cutting-edge research, driving change
through advocacy, facilitating professional education, collaborating with MS
organizations around the world, and providing programs and services designed
to help people with MS and their families move their lives forward. The
Society is dedicated to achieving a world free of MS. Join the movement at
www.nationalMSsociety.org.

About Merck Serono

Merck Serono is the division for innovative prescription
pharmaceuticals of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, a global pharmaceutical
and chemical company. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, Merck Serono
discovers, develops, manufactures and markets innovative small molecules and
biopharmaceuticals to help patients with unmet medical needs. In the United
States and Canada, EMD Serono operates through separately incorporated
affiliates.

Merck Serono has leading brands serving patients with cancer (Erbitux(R),
cetuximab), multiple sclerosis (Rebif(R), interferon beta-1a), infertility
(Gonal-f(R), follitropin alpha), endocrine and metabolic disorders (Saizen(R)
and Serostim(R), somatropin), (Kuvan(R), sapropterin dihydrochloride) as well
as cardiometabolic diseases (Glucophage(R), metformin), (Concor(R),
bisoprolol), (Euthyrox(R), levothyroxine). Not all products are available in
all markets.

With an annual R&D expenditure of more than EUR 1 billion,
Merck Serono is committed to growing its business in specialist-focused
therapeutic areas including neurodegenerative diseases, oncology, fertility
and endocrinology, as well as new areas potentially arising out of research
and development in autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.

About Merck

Merck is a global pharmaceutical and chemical company with
total revenues of EUR 7.7 billion in 2009, a history that began in 1668, and
a future shaped by approximately 33,600 employees in 64 countries. Its
success is characterized by innovations from entrepreneurial employees.
Merck's operating activities come under the umbrella of Merck KGaA, in which
the Merck family holds an approximately 70% interest and free shareholders
own the remaining approximately 30%. In 1917 the U.S. subsidiary Merck & Co.
was expropriated and has been an independent company ever since.

For more information, please visit www.merckserono.com
or www.merck.de

Merck Serono S.A. - Geneva, 9 Chemin des Mines, 1202 Genève, Suisse, Media relations:
Tel: +41-22-414-36-00