PIVOTAL BIOSCIENCES ANNOUNCES $1.4 MILLION SERIES A FINANCING

LOS ANGELES, CA - February 23, 2004 - Pivotal BioSciences, Inc., a privately-held Los Angeles-based biotechnology company developing innovative low toxicity therapies for cancer, today announced it had closed on a private placement of $1,437,000 of Series A Voting Preferred Stock with a limited number of accredited investors. The proceeds of the private placement will be used to fund the development of Pivotal's lead compounds which have been licensed from the University of Southern California. The placement was arranged by Casimir Capital, L.P. of New York, N.Y.

Pivotal products in development include PB1, a low toxicity version of intereukin-2, a drug already approved for the treatment of renal cancer and metastatic melanoma but which has serious side effects for patients including a 5% mortality rate; PB2, a novel anti-angiogenic and anti-metastatic compound derived from the venom of the Southern Copperhead snake; and PB3, a fusion protein consisting of the liver-expressed chemokine (LEC) and a cancer-targeting monoclonal antibody.

Pivotal BioSciences was founded by Alan Epstein, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Pathology at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine; Francis S. Markland, Jr., Ph.D., Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine; and Dimitri Villard, a former director of SG Cowen, an investment banking firm. In addition to the founders, Pivotal's Board of Directors includes Krisztina Zsebo, Ph.D., a former executive at Amgen, Cell Genesis, ALZA and other biotechnology companies who is also a consultant to Pivotal; Richard Anthony, Ph.D., President of Catalyst Pharmaceutical Research, LLC, a clinical research organization and product development consultancy in Pasadena, CA; and Alexander Arrow, M.D., C.F.A., senior medical technology analyst at Lazard, a global institutional equity research and investment banking firm.

"Breakthroughs in the basic understanding of the immune system, combined with powerful new biotechnological tools, have provided the foundation for new, rational, and technologically sophisticated approaches to immunotherapy and anti-angiogenesis, and have created an environment where these classes of drugs are now poised for success," said Mr. Villard, Pivotal's Chairman. "Casimir Capital has provided us with the critical early-stage round that will help develop our products so as to move them forward into the clinic."

"We are excited about the opportunity to become involved in the growth of Pivotal," said Richard Sands, President and CEO of Casimir Capital. "We believe they have an outstanding team of scientists and products with large market potential together with excellent proprietary technology."