Cerimon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Names Matthew J. Meyer its General Counsel and Vice President of Business Development and Licensing

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Jan. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Cerimon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that Matthew J. Meyer has been named General Counsel, a newly established position, and Vice President of Business Development and Licensing. Mr. Meyer is a global life sciences executive and corporate attorney with broad experience with large pharmaceutical, medical device and early-stage companies in the US and Europe. In the business development role, he replaces Timothy J. McBride, who will be furthering his career in Europe. Mr. Meyer will report to Paul Sekhri, President and CEO, and will be responsible for managing the Company's efforts to identify and secure new strategic business opportunities and product acquisitions.

Mr. Meyer brings considerable experience to his new role in the areas of commercial law, business development, marketing and licensing. Before joining Cerimon, Mr. Meyer held senior management positions at Draeger Medical Systems, a global medical device company, most recently serving as Vice President and General Counsel. Prior to Draeger, Mr. Meyer held several positions of increasing responsibility at Novartis Pharma AG in Basel, Switzerland, including serving as Head of Global Marketing Channel Innovations. While at Novartis, he also coordinated and implemented strategic commercial, marketing, research and development initiatives for the Arthritis, Bone, GI and Urology (ABGU) marketing franchise. Previously, Mr. Meyer spent four years as Vice President, Global Business Development and Legal Affairs at Allscripts LLC and five years as a commercial attorney at Pfizer Inc. in New York.

Mr. Meyer graduated Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Cornell University. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from Villanova University School of Law.

"Matt Meyer's proven track record as an incisive leader in business development in the life sciences sector will be a valuable asset to this Company," commented Mr. Sekhri. "We are extremely pleased to have Matt join us as a member of our senior management team and believe he will contribute greatly to our efforts of building a pipeline of products aligned with our corporate strategy."

About Cerimon Pharmaceuticals

Cerimon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing and commercializing therapeutic products for autoimmune diseases, inflammation, and pain. Cerimon believes these new treatment options will enable physicians specialized in treating these conditions to further improve the lives of their patients.

Cerimon currently has two drugs in development. Simulect(R) (basiliximab) entered a Phase IIb study for moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis in the first quarter of 2007. Cerimon's topical patch formulation of diclofenac sodium completed a Phase I study in the fourth quarter of 2007. This study will rapidly be followed by two Phase II/III studies for the treatment of acute musculoskeletal pain.

The Company is well-financed, having closed a $70 million Series A financing in late 2005 with premier investors including MPM, Nomura Phase4 Ventures, and OrbiMed Advisors.

For more information on Cerimon, please visit the Company's website at http://www.cerimon.com.

CONTACT: Jim Welch, Chief Financial Officer of Cerimon Pharmaceuticals,
+1-650-827-4000, jwelch@cerimon.com; or Justin Jackson, media,
jjackson@burnsmc.com, or Juliane Snowden, investors, jsnowden@burnsmc.com,
or Nicki Kahner, investors, nkahner@burnsmc.com, all of Burns McClellan,
Inc. for Cerimon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., +1-212-213-0006

Web site: http://www.cerimon.com/

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