Proximagen Group plc - Notes positive vote from FDA in respect of Arena's 5-HT2c agonist lorcaserin

11 May 2012

Proximagen Group plc (AIM: PRX), the rapidly growing company with a focus on the treatment of disorders of the central nervous system and inflammatory diseases, welcomes yesterday's announcement by Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. that the US Food and Drug Administration ("the FDA") Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee had voted in favour of the available data demonstrating that the potential benefits of lorcaserin outweigh the potential risks when used long-term in a population of overweight and obese individuals.  The committee voted 18-4 in favour of lorcaserin.

Lorcaserin is a 5-HT2c agonist being developed by Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. It is intended for weight management, including weight loss and maintenance of weight loss, in patients who are obese or overweight and have at least one weight-related co-morbid condition.

Proximagen owns the worldwide rights to PRX00933, an oral 5-HT2c agonist for treating obesity. In Phase II trials, PRX00933 showed a dose-dependent and statistically significant decrease in body weight that falls within FDA guidelines for this condition.  PRX00933 has been shown to be safe and well tolerated and has been administered to approximately 400 patients.

The Company will continue to evaluate the commercial opportunities that PRX00933 presents, whilst awaiting the final decision of the FDA on lorcaserin which is due next month.

Enquiries

Proximagen Group plc

Tel: +44 (0)20 7400 7700

Kenneth Mulvany, Chief Executive Officer

James Hunter, Finance Director

Singer Capital Markets (Nominated Adviser)

Tel: +44 (0)20 3205 7500

Shaun Dobson/Claes Spång

M:Communications (Media enquiries)

Tel: +44 (0)20 7920 2330

Mary-Jane Elliott / Sarah Macleod / Hollie Vile

proximagen@mcomgroup.com

About Proximagen

Proximagen Group plc (AIM:PRX) is a European biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialisation of novel therapeutics for diseases of the central nervous system (CNS) and inflammation.

The Company is developing potential new best-in-class therapeutics in its core disease areas including epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease, as well as in other areas such as inflammation, oncology and neuropathic pain.

Proximagen has a number of existing partnerships with pharmaceutical companies including GlaxoSmithKline, Upsher-Smith and Lundbeck, and is developing a broad pipeline of drug candidate programmes, with four programmes in clinical development and more than ten earlier stage assets being progressed.

Proximagen's strategy is to advance its pipeline with its partners and to acquire innovative drug candidates that complement its pipeline, with the objective of scaling up its risk-mitigated operating model and generating sustainable profits.

For more information, please visit www.proximagen.com.