EISAI GROUP TO TRANSFORM ITS PRODUCT CREATION STRUCTURE TO REFLECT FOCUS ON PERSONALIZED MEDICINE

Eisai Co., Ltd.
EIDIA Co., Ltd.

Eisai Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tokyo, President & CEO: Haruo Naito, “Eisai”) and its diagnostics business subsidiary EIDIA Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tokyo, President: Atsushi Saito, “EIDIA”) announced today that the two companies have decided to dissolve and absorb the their jointly owned diagnostics research and development subsidiary, Palma Bee’Z Research Institute Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tokyo, President & CEO: Keisuke Watanabe, “Palma Bee’Z”), effective March 31, 2013. The move is part of the Eisai Group’s efforts to go ahead with the transformation of its in vitro diagnostics development function, and aims to strengthen the Group’s product creation structure to reflect its focus on personalized medicine.

Palma Bee’Z was established on May 13, 2002 with the primary objective of conducting research and development of diagnostics applying gene signal amplification technology discovered in-house at EIDIA (then Sanko Junyaku Co., Ltd.).

With recent advances in the field of human biology, the development of companion diagnostics such as gene-testing agents and other initiatives in personalized medicine are increasingly becoming an important strategy for the Eisai Group. On June 1, 2012, with the aim of achieving early developments in in vitro diagnostics, including companion diagnostics, the Eisai Group merged Eisai’s Biomarker Personalized Medicine Core Function Unit (BPM CFU), which is in charge of biomarker research, with EIDIA’s diagnostics research and development function, thereby establishing within the BPM CFU a new in vitro diagnostics research organization, the Diagnostic Development Department. Through Palma Bee’z dissolution and absorption into this newly established organization, the Eisai Group expects to further enhance its product creation structure, aiming to continue to realize early development of in vitro diagnostics.

The Eisai Group will continue to strive to maximize patient benefits through the early creation of drugs and diagnostics treatments focused on personalized medicine.

[ Please refer to the following notes for more information about Palma Bee’Z and companion diagnostics. ]

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< Notes to editors >

1.Corporate outline of Palma Bee’Z Research Institute Co., Ltd.

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Representative Keisuke Watanabe
Head Office 1-10-6 Iwamoto-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan
(within EIDIA Head Office)
Research Facility 3262-12 Yoshiwara, Ami-machi, Inashiki-gun, Ibaraki
(within EIDIA Ibaraki Plant)
Scope of Business Research and development of gene-testing agents
Capital ¥50 million (as of March 31, 2012)
Major Stockholders Eisai Co., Ltd.: 50%; EIDIA Co., Ltd.: 50%

2.About companion diagnostics

Companion diagnostics (CoDx) are used to predict the effects and/or side effects of a drug before administering it to the patient. Following recent advances in the field of human biology, personalized medicine, which enables patients to select treatments that best address their individual needs and circumstances, is increasingly becoming a reality. In order to continue to make advances within personalized medicine in the area of drug therapy, one crucial factor in ensuring success lies in the early development of CoDx to identify biomarkers, such as those found in genes and proteins, to predict the efficacy and safety of new drugs and optimize proper dosing levels.