Mérieux Alliance Becomes Institut Mérieux

Alain Mérieux Confirms the Institute's Commitment to Meeting new Medical and Public Health Challenges

PARIS, December 7 - Mérieux Alliance, the Mérieux family holding company, announces today
that it changes its name to take on the historic name of Institut Mérieux. At
a press conference held in Paris, Alain Mérieux reviewed the important role
played by industrial biology in the face of major public health challenges
including infectious diseases, cancer, personalized medicine, theranostics
and nutrition. Along with Alexandre Mérieux and the management teams, he
outlined the many strengths that Institut Mérieux and its
companies-bioMérieux, Transgene, ABL and Silliker- will rely upon to meet
these challenges in three strategic areas:

    - in vitro diagnostics,
    - immunotherapy ,
    - food safety and nutrition.

"Today we are returning to a name with historic value: the name Institut
Mérieux, created in 1897 by Marcel Mérieux. We are especially attached to the
symbol this name represents, but above all it is a flag for our commitment to
serving the medicine of tomorrow," said Alain Mérieux. "Now more than ever,
we intend to serve public health globally. This flag stands for longstanding
values that are as relevant today as they were yesterday: the long-term
vision that is essential for our bio-industrial activities, a resolutely
global approach, and growth driven by scientific innovation, upholding the
family and Pasteurian tradition."

Institut Mérieux plans to mobilize all the scientific, industrial and
financial resources necessary to carry out its missions to serve medicine and
public health worldwide. Following the sale last August of the ShanH holding,
which controlled the Indian vaccine company Shantha Biotechnics, the
Institute has concentrated on the development of three key areas of activity,
with an emphasis on scientific innovation and an international presence.

Institut Mérieux, through its companies, pursues an original,
innovation-based strategy focusing on:

    - multidisciplinary partnerships combining public and private research,
      such as the partnership forged recently by the CEA and the Institut
      Pasteur;

    - cross-disciplinary research programs involving the group's companies
      and, in certain cases, Fondation Mérieux:

      - ADNA (Advanced Diagnostics and New Therapeutics Approaches): This
        personalized medicine and theranostics program brings together
        bioMérieux, Transgene, Généthon and GenoSafe and is supported by OSEO
       (French Agency for innovation aid).

      - A three-fold approach to fighting tuberculosis: With 8 million new
        cases each year, this disease represents a major public health
        concern. It will be the focus of a diagnostics approach (with
        bioMérieux), a vaccine approach (with Transgene), and an
        epidemiological approach with studies conducted by Fondation Mérieux
        in India and China.

      - Food safety /nutrition /health: New areas of scientific and medical
        investigations are being explored in connection with metagenomics, at
        the frontier of nutrition and health.

    - Mérieux Research Grants are awarded for particularly innovative
      research projects that will enable the creation of international
      scientific investigator networks.

Within the scope of its strategy to promote innovation, Institut Mérieux
has created Mérieux Développement, a new, 100% controlled investment firm
devoted to healthcare. This firm aims to identify and accompany particularly
innovative businesses and projects in the fields of diagnostics, prevention
and therapeutics, medical devices and health-related services. As a minority
shareholder and pro-active partner, Mérieux Développement intends to apply a
long-term vision to its investment strategy and plans to accompany the firms
in which it invests, enabling them to benefit from Institut Mérieux's
bio-industrial experience and providing access to its international network.
Mérieux Développement could invest up to 70 million Euros over the next five
years in high-potential firms in Europe, Canada, India and China.

Institut Mérieux strengthens its international presence, particularly in
Asia, with the creation of a base in China.

For 22 years Institut Mérieux has been operating in China, where it will
create a center combining R&D, bio-industrial and commercial activities.
Following Europe and the United States, China will represent the third
advanced base for Institut Mérieux and its companies worldwide, in a region
that has high-level potential in biology and substantial public health needs.
Discussions are currently underway to finalize the necessary investments.

About Institut Mérieux

With extensive experience in industrial microbiology, Institut Mérieux
contributes to serving medicine and public health across the globe. For the
fight against infectious diseases and cancer, it imagines and develops new
approaches in the fields of diagnostics, immunotherapy, and food safety and
nutrition.

With its three business activities- bioMérieux, Transgene and
Silliker-Institut Mérieux has the potential to provide answers to the new
challenges of public health globally: personalized medicine and new
therapies, infectious diseases and cancer, food safety and nutrition.

bioMérieux, listed on the Euronext Paris market and 59% owned, is based
in Marcy l'Etoile (France). World leader of in vitro diagnostics and
industrial microbiological controls, bioMérieux employs 6,400 people. With a
global presence in 150 countries, the group has a network of 39 subsidiaries
and generates revenues amounting to 1,111 billion Euros.

www.biomerieux.com

Transgene: Based in Strasburg (France), this biotech company is 55%
controlled and is listed on the Paris stock exchange Euronext. It develops
immunotherapy products for the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases.

www.transgene.fr

Silliker is a privately-owned company, 89% controlled, based in Chicago
(United States). Encompassing a network of nearly 50 laboratories dedicated
to improving food safety and nutrition, with 3,000 employees, Silliker
operates in 16 countries today.

www.silliker.com

ABL Inc (Advanced BioScience Laboratories),is a privately-owned company
100% controlled, based in Washington D.C. (US). ABL employs 100 people
specialized in virological research.

www.ablinc.com

Institut Mérieux employs nearly 10,000 people in the service of public
health worldwide and generates net sales of over 1.3 billion Euros.

www.institut-merieux.com

Press contacts: Institut Mérieux: Anne de Chiffreville, +33(0)4-72-83-48-88, anne.de.chiffreville at theraconseil.com; Image 7:, Laurence Heilbron,n +33(0)1-53-70-74-64, lheilbronn at image7.fr; Tiphaine Hecketsweiler, +33(0)1-53-70-74-70, thecketsweiler at image7.fr