Bolder BioTechnology Receives National Cancer Institute Grant to Develop Platelet-Stimulating Proteins For Treating Thrombocytopenia

Wheat Ridge, Colorado - October 9, 2003 - Bolder BioTechnology, Inc. announced today that it has been awarded a $863,245 Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant, entitled "Long-Acting IL-11 for Treating Thrombocytopenia", from the National Cancer Institute of The National Institutes of Health (NIH). Receipt of the entire grant award is contingent upon the achievement of certain research milestones.

Daniel Doherty, Ph.D., Director of Research and Principal Investigator for the grant, stated "We are delighted to receive continued support for our second generation interleukin-11 (IL-11) program from the National Cancer Institute. There is a strong need for better medicines to treat thrombocytopenia (low blood platelet levels), which is a frequent side effect of chemotherapy treatment in cancer patients. Recombinant IL-11 is currently used to prevent thrombocytopenia in high risk cancer patients receiving chemotherapy; however, the drug is inconvenient to use because it must be administered by daily injection, typically for 10-14 days following chemotherapy. Our second-generation IL-11 analogs potentially can be administered to patients only once every few weeks, rather than daily. In addition to convenience, our long-acting IL-11 analogs may reduce the amount of protein required by patients and result in a safer, more efficacious IL-11 product. Funds provided by this grant award will be used to optimize a final clinical development candidate and develop an efficient manufacturing process for this product."

The NIH SBIR program is a peer-reviewed grant program that provides research support to small businesses to discover and develop innovative biomedical products for the treatment of serious unmet medical needs. Bolder BioTechnology previously received a $100,000 Phase I SBIR grant award from The National Cancer Institute, which was used to demonstrate the feasibility of producing long-acting, highly potent IL-11 analogs using the company's targeted PEGylation technology.

Bolder BioTechnology, Inc. uses advanced protein engineering technologies to create proprietary, long-acting human protein pharmaceuticals for the treatment of hematopoietic and endocrine disorders, cancer and infectious diseases. For additional information about Bolder BioTechnology, Inc., please visit our web site at www.bolderbio.com.

Statements contained herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements that are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties. There are a number of important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements made by the Company. These factors include, but are not limited to: (1) the Company's ability to successfully complete product research and development, including pre-clinical and clinical studies, and commercialization; (2) the Company's ability to obtain required government approvals; (3) the Company's ability to attract and/or maintain manufacturing, sales, distribution and marketing partners; and (4) the Company's ability to develop and commercialize its products before its competitors.

Contact information:          Joe Cox, Ph.D., President          (303) 420-4420 ext.101