Vivalis Signs A New Commercial License In The Veterinary Vaccine Field

NANTES, FRANCE--(Marketwire - December 22, 2009) -

VIVALIS (NYSE Euronext Paris: VLS), a biopharmaceutical company that provides the pharmaceutical industry with innovative cell-based solutions for the manufacture of vaccines and proteins and develops drugs to prevent and treat viral diseases, announces today that one of its client in the veterinary field has exercised its option for a commercial license after evaluating the EB66® technology in the frame of a research license.

Financial terms are not disclosed.

This new license brings the total number of licenses signed by VIVALIS in 2009 to 9, of which 4 are commercial licenses. This brings the total number of licenses signed to date to 28. In addition to these 9 licences signed, a sub-license of the EB66® cell line has been granted by GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals to Kakeksuken (Japan) in the influenza field. GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals and Kaketsuken have signed an agreement to co-develop influenza vaccines, including pandemic influenza vaccines, produced using EB66® cell-culture technology in Japan.

In addition, in November 2009, VIVALIS renewed the rights granted to sanofi-aventis to test the EB66® cell line for the production of monoclonal antibodies and extended it to the production of recombinant proteins.

Franck Grimaud, CEO, and Majid Mehtali, CSO, co-managers of Vivalis said: “We are very pleased to sign this new commercial license, the fourth of the year, bringing the total of commercial licenses signed to date to 16 on a total of 28 licenses. This new signature confirms the relevance of our business model, the quality of our technology and of the support our teams bring to clients. We are very confident this trend will continue in 2010.”

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Next financial press release:

27 January 2010, after NYSE Euronext market closing: 2009 annual revenues

About the EB66® line

The EB66® cell line, derived from duck embryonic stem cells, presents unique industrial and regulatory characteristics such as long-term genetic stability, immortality and cell growth to high cell densities in suspension in a serum-free medium (>20 millions cells/mL).

The BMF (Biologics Master File) for the registration of the EB66® cell line with the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) was filed on June 27, 2008.

The EB66® cell line is currently used or being tested by 75% of the major players in vaccines. VIVALIS has furthermore demonstrated that the EB66® cell line can be easily genetically modified, permitting the expression of recombinant proteins of potential interest. Moreover the glycosylation profile of monoclonal antibodies produced through EB66® cell lines is similar to the glycosylation profiles of human monoclonal antibodies with the added benefit of being distinguished by reduced fucose content. This latter characteristic is known to be associated with a higher level of antibody cytotoxic activity, particularly useful in the treatment of cancer cells.

About VIVALIS (www.vivalis.com)

VIVALIS (NYSE- Euronext: VLS) is a biopharmaceutical company that provides innovative cell-based solutions to the pharmaceutical industry for the manufacture of vaccines and proteins, and develops drugs for the prevention and treatment of viral diseases. VIVALIS’ expertise and intellectual property are exploited in three main areas:

1. The development and manufacturing of vaccines. VIVALIS offers research and commercial licenses for its EB66® cell line, derived from duck stem cells, to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies for the production of vaccines. Vivalis receives upfront fees, milestone payments and royalties on its licensees’ net sales.

2. The development of production systems for recombinant proteins and monoclonal antibodies. VIVALIS licenses its EB66® cell line for the production of recombinant proteins to biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. Vivalis receives upfront fees, milestone payments and royalties on its licensees’ net sales.

3. The construction of a portfolio of proprietary products in the area of vaccines and anti-viral molecules (hepatitis C).

Based in Nantes (France), VIVALIS was founded in 1999 by the Grimaud group (1,450 employees), the second largest group worldwide in animal genetic selection. Part of the stem cell technology originated from INRA, CNRS, ENS research VIVALIS has established more than 30 partnerships and licenses with world leaders in this sector, including Sanofi Pasteur, GlaxoSmithKline, CSL Kaketsuken, Merial, Intervet, SAFC Biosciences. VIVALIS is a member of the French ATLANTIC BIOTHERAPIES bio-cluster.

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