UCB and Crohn's Disease Working Group Award $175,000 in Research Grants to Gastroenterology Fellows

CHICAGO, June 1 /PRNewswire/ -- UCB, Inc. and the Crohn's Disease Working Group (CDWG) today announced the four recipients of the 2009 Research Awards in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) for Gastroenterology (GI) Fellows, who each will receive a one-year research grant for their original clinical or basic research, totaling $175,000 for all four grants. The recipients were selected by the CDWG Steering Committee and the awards were funded by a grant from UCB. A reception honoring the recipients is being held at the 2009 Digestive Disease Week meeting in Chicago.

"This award is tremendously important in supporting the gastroenterology community and furthering critical IBD research at a time when other funding sources are increasingly limited," said Scott Plevy, M.D., Associate Professor of Medicine, Microbiology & Immunology at the UNC School of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology and member of the CDWG steering committee. "The award was created to support young physician-scientists at a crucial time in their training, foster enthusiasm, drive interest in the field and ultimately pave the way for better patient care."

The Research Awards in Inflammatory Bowel Disease for GI Fellows was established in December 2008. Recipients of awards were considered based on the novelty, feasibility and significance of their proposals, as well as their commitment to an academic career, the record and commitment of their mentor and the institutional and research environment. The 2009 recipients include:

Vera Kandror Denmark, Mount Sinai School of Medicine

Rebecca Scherr, Emory University School of Medicine

Joel Pekow, University of Chicago

Tasneem Ahmed, Cleveland Clinic

"UCB is committed to providing meaningful medicines, resources and programs to people on the front lines of treating inflammatory bowel disease," said Olav Hellebo, UCB's President of Immunology Operations. "We are thrilled to support the efforts of emerging gastroenterology thought leaders and to contribute to exciting new research in IBD."

About Crohn's Disease Working Group (CDWG)

The mission of the Crohn's Disease Working Group (CDWG) is to provide a forum for the education of healthcare professionals through the development and exchange of high-quality evidence-based materials which are easily accessible and which aim to improve the quality-of-life of patients with Crohn's disease.

About UCB

UCB, Brussels, Belgium (www.ucb.com) is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the research, development and commercialization of innovative medicines with a focus on the fields of central nervous system and immunology disorders. Employing approximately 10 000 people in over 40 countries, UCB generated revenue of EUR 3.6 billion in 2008. UCB is listed on Euronext Brussels (symbol: UCB).

Forward-Looking Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements based on current plans, estimates and beliefs of management. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to be materially different from those that may be implied by such forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Important factors that could result in such differences include: changes in general economic, business and competitive conditions, effects of future judicial decisions, changes in regulation, exchange rate fluctuations and hiring and retention of its employees.

SOURCE UCB, Inc.

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