Agreement with Pozen Inc.

AstraZeneca PLC
02 August 2006

 AstraZeneca and Pozen Inc Sign Deal to Develop and Commercialise naproxen and
 esomeprazole Fixed Dose Combinations utilising Pozen's Proprietary Technology
                       for the Treatment of Chronic Pain



AstraZeneca today announced an exclusive global agreement with Pozen Inc.
(NASDAQ: POZN) to co-develop fixed dose combinations of naproxen and
esomeprazole for chronic pain, utilising Pozen's proprietary formulation
technology.  The fixed dose combinations have the potential to provide chronic
pain sufferers with a new treatment with good efficacy and a low upper
gastro-intestinal (GI) side-effect profile.



Under the terms of the agreement, AstraZeneca will pay Pozen an upfront fee
totaling $40 million with potential aggregate milestone payments of $160 million
for certain development and regulatory milestones; and $175 million of potential
sales performance milestones, if certain thresholds are achieved.  Royalties
will be paid on net sales on a tiered royalty structure that ranges from
mid-single digits to mid-teens.



The development programme will be co-funded, with Pozen responsible for the US
development programme and for regulatory filings in the US.  Phase III clinical
development is expected to start in 2007, with a US submission currently
targeted for the end of 2008.  AstraZeneca will have full responsibility for all
development activities outside of the US as well as all aspects of
manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution on a worldwide basis.
AstraZeneca will also be responsible for all non-U.S. regulatory filings. Both
parties will contribute scientific, development and regulatory expertise to the
collaboration.  The patent expires in 2023 in the United States.



'This collaboration is further evidence of the progress we are making in
strengthening our pipeline of new products,' said Dr. John Patterson, Executive
Director, Development, for AstraZeneca.  'We believe that the combination of
esomeprazole and Pozen's proprietary PN technology has the potential to address
one of the key unmet medical needs for patients with chronic pain; namely, good
pain relief coupled to a low risk of gastrointestinal ulcers and good
tolerability.'







John R. Plachetka, Pharm.D., Pozen's Chairman, President and Chief Executive
Officer said, 'One of our goals in developing our PN technology has been to
collaborate with a large pharma company that has the commercial resources
necessary to drive products based on PN technology into a leadership position
amongst all NSAID products.  AstraZeneca has consistently shown that it is one
of the best pharmaceutical companies in the world, and we are especially pleased
to be utilizing esomeprazole in this product.'



The collaboration is subject to clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust
Improvements Act. No further financial terms have been disclosed.



                                     -Ends-

2 August, 2006



Contacts:



AstraZeneca:



Media Enquiries:
Steve Brown (London)  [phone]
Edel McCaffrey (London) [phone]



Analyst/Investor Enquiries:



Jonathan Hunt (London) [phone]
Mina Blair (London) [phone]
Ed Seage (US) [phone]
Jorgen Winroth (US) [phone]



Note to News Editors:



About AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca is a major international healthcare business engaged in research,
development, manufacturing and marketing of prescription pharmaceuticals and
supplier for healthcare services.  AstraZeneca is one of the world's leading
pharmaceutical companies with healthcare sales of US $23.95 billion and is a
leader in gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, neuroscience, respiratory, oncology
and infection product sales.  AstraZeneca is listed in the Dow Jones
Sustainability Index (Global) as well as the FTSE4Good Index.



About Pozen Inc

POZEN (Nasdaq: POZN) is a pharmaceutical company committed to developing
therapeutic advancements for diseases with unmet medical needs where it can
improve efficacy, safety, and/or patient convenience. Since its inception, Pozen
has focused its efforts primarily on the development of pharmaceutical products
for the treatment of acute and chronic pain and other pain related conditions.
The company's common stock is traded on The Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol
'POZN'.  For detailed company information, including copies of this and other
press releases, see Pozen's website: http://www.pozen.com




                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange