Re Successful Fund Raising

Oxford Biomedica PLC
10 August 2000


For further information, please contact:   
    
Oxford BioMedica plc       
Professor Alan Kingsman, Chief Executive       Tel: [phone]
City/Financial Enquiries:
David Simonson/Melanie Toyne Sewell
Merlin Financial Communications                Tel: [phone]
Scientific/Trade Press Enquiries:
Sue Charles/Katya Stout, HCC De Facto Group    Tel:  [phone]



OXFORD BIOMEDICA RAISES £8.5 MILLION 

AND ESTABLISHES A GENE DISCOVERY DIVISION

Oxford, UK - 10 August 2000: Oxford BioMedica announces that it has raised
£8.5 million net of expenses. The net proceeds of the fund raising will be
used principally to develop a new Gene Discovery Division which will be
adapting BioMedica's core gene therapy technology for use in the fields of
Genomics, Target Validation and Gene Identification. The new division is an
extension of the Drug Discovery Unit that was established in February 2000. 

Fund raising
The fund raising was by way of an issue of 14.6 million New Ordinary Shares at
a price of 60p per share. The shares were placed with number of major
institutions, some of whom have not invested previously in Oxford BioMedica. 

Commenting on the fund raising, Chief Executive Professor Alan Kingsman said:
 'We have been able to move very quickly and cost-effectively to establish a
competitive new business division. This was essential to take full advantage
of the opportunities in the exciting and rapidly developing field of
genomics-based product development'.

The Gene Discovery Division
An increasing amount of data about genes and their relationship with disease
is being generated by the genomics and proteomics industry. In addition the
completion of the Human Genome Project is starting to provide a vast source of
genetic data. The key challenge that faces the pharmaceutical and
biotechnology industry now is to derive value from these data by producing new
products to treat major diseases. 

A major rate-limiting step in this path to products is to identify genes that
are directly and mechanistically involved in a disease process as opposed to
simply describing genes that may have an undefined association with disease.
BioMedica's Gene Discovery Division meets this challenge head-on with two
unique approaches, LentiVector(TM)gene transfer technology for target
validation and a new approach to gene identification called Smartomics(TM).

LentiVector Technology(TM) - The LentiVector(TM)technology makes use of a
heavily engineered virus, Equine Infectious Anaemia Virus, to deliver genes to
a wide range of cell types. It was developed as part of the Company's gene
therapy programmes. The technology can also be used to identify, amongst the
many hundreds of genes emerging from genomics and proteomics programmes, those
few genes that are directly involved in disease mechanisms and which are,
therefore, the prime targets for pharmaceutical product development. This is
known as Target Validation. BioMedica has already signed deals in this area
with AstraZeneca and Aventis and there are other deals in discussion.

Smartomics(TM)- Smartomics(TM) is a 'knowledge-based' system using BioMedica's
gene delivery systems to improve the output of genomic and proteomic screens. 
The technology works by selectively amplifying the activity of disease-related
genes. This makes these important genes easier to identify and it provides
more information on their function. The improved screening process allows the
rapid identification of a more select group of genes, of which a much larger
proportion are relevant to a particular disease. This should provide a faster
route to product development, and products derived from the genes should be
patented more effectively.   In short, the Directors of BioMedica believe that
Smartomics offers a powerful new route to extracting value from the genomics
field.

The initial applications for Smartomics(TM) will be in the areas of
cardiovascular disease, cancer, neurodegenerative disease and arthritis. The
genes identified will be the subject of new patent applications and are
expected to build an intellectual property position that will increase in
value over the next 2-3 years.  The patents are expected to form the focus for
licensing deals with pharmaceutical and biotech companies in which there would
be access payments, milestone payments and royalties. In addition, BioMedica
expects to gain revenue from the sale of information derived from its
Smartomics(TM) screens.

Dr. Paul Durrands, commercial director of Oxford BioMedica plc, has been
appointed Chief Operating Officer of the Gene Discovery Division. Dr. Durrands
joined the Board of Oxford BioMedica on 22 June 2000, having previously held
senior positions in a number of companies, most recently as Finance Director
of the joint venture between Yoplait and Dairy Crest. 

Commenting on the announcement, Alan Kingsman, Chief Executive of Oxford
BioMedica said:  

'Oxford BioMedica is at the forefront of several aspects of gene technology -
in the fields of gene therapy and gene-based immunotherapy.  We will now be
using our core gene technology to discover new genes that are functionally
involved in a range of disease processes. Our unique approaches will extract
value from the significant amounts of information being generated by the Human
Genome Project and Genomics in general.

'This is an exciting development for Oxford BioMedica and we are delighted
with the response and support from institutional investors in funding this new
Division.  We believe our approach to target validation and gene discovery
through Smartomics(TM) addresses important issues being faced by the Drug
Discovery market. We look forward to making considerable progress in this area
and generating substantial shareholder value as a result.' 


Notes to Editors

1. Oxford BioMedica: Established in 1995, the Company specialises in the
development and application of gene-based therapeutics using advanced gene
delivery technologies for the treatment of disease in the areas of oncology,
viral infection and neurodegenerative disease. Oxford BioMedica plc was
floated on the UK Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange
in December 1996.

2. This release is also available on the World Wide Web at: 
http://www.oxfordbiomedica.co.uk