Isis Pharmaceuticals' and GSK's Innovative Collaboration Voted Breakthrough Alliance of 2011

CARLSBAD, Calif., May 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISIS) announced today that the strategic alliance between Isis and GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) has been honored with the Breakthrough Alliance Award of 2011.  The award, sponsored by Deloitte Recap, was presented at the Allicense 2011 Conference in San Francisco last week.  Annually, the Allicense Conference nominates five biotech-pharmaceutical alliances as the breakthrough deals of the previous year. The award is bestowed upon the alliance that receives the most votes by biotech and pharmaceutical business development and licensing executives.

"Our business strategy maximizes the value of our innovations through strategic alliances, such as our alliance with GSK.  The success of this strategy is evident in the substantial financing raised through partnering and the breadth of our pipeline.  We are pleased to have received this recognition from our peers in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry.  In fact, this is the second time we have received this honor," said B. Lynne Parshall, Chief Operating Officer and CFO of Isis.  "This award is especially befitting, as both companies employ an innovative and collaborative approach to partnering.  In just over a year, we have already identified our first development candidate, ISIS-TTRRx, the first drug to move forward under this collaboration.  We look forward to advancing ISIS-TTRRx into the clinic and achieving further successes in the collaboration."

In March 2010, Isis entered into a strategic alliance with GSK to develop RNA therapeutics for rare and infectious diseases.  Under the terms of the agreement, Isis received $35 million in payments from GSK and is eligible to receive license fees and milestone payments, totaling nearly $1.5 billion, in the event all six programs are successfully developed for one or more indications and commercialized through to pre-agreed sales targets.  Isis is eligible to receive on average up to $20 million in milestone payments per program up to Phase 2 proof-of-concept.  GSK will have the option to license compounds at proof-of-concept and will be responsible for all further development and commercialization.  In addition, Isis will receive up to double-digit royalties on sales from any product that is successfully commercialized.  The alliance applies Isis' antisense drug discovery platform to discover and develop new therapeutics against targets for rare and serious diseases, including infectious diseases and some conditions causing blindness.

ABOUT ISIS PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.

Isis is exploiting its expertise in RNA to discover and develop novel drugs for its product pipeline and for its partners.  The Company has successfully commercialized the world's first antisense drug and has 24 drugs in development.  Isis' drug development programs are focused on treating cardiovascular, metabolic, and severe neurodegenerative diseases and cancer.  Isis' partners are developing antisense drugs invented by Isis to treat a wide variety of diseases.  Isis and Alnylam Pharmaceuticals are joint owners of Regulus Therapeutics Inc., a company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of microRNA therapeutics.  Isis also has made significant innovations beyond human therapeutics resulting in products that other companies, including Abbott, are commercializing.  As an innovator in RNA-based drug discovery and development, Isis has designed and executed a patent strategy that has provided the Company with strong and extensive protection for Isis' drugs and technology.  Additional information about Isis is available at www.isispharm.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This press release includes forward-looking statements regarding Isis' collaboration with GlaxoSmithKline and Isis' research and development opportunities in disease areas including rare and infectious diseases.  Any statement describing Isis' goals, expectations, financial or other projections, intentions or beliefs is a forward-looking statement and should be considered an at-risk statement.  Such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, particularly those inherent in the process of discovering, developing and commercializing drugs that are safe and effective for use as human therapeutics, and in the endeavor of building a business around such drugs.  Isis' forward-looking statements also involve assumptions that, if they never materialize or prove correct, could cause its results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.  Although Isis' forward-looking statements reflect the good faith judgment of its management, these statements are based only on facts and factors currently known by Isis.  As a result, you are cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements.  These and other risks concerning Isis' programs are described in additional detail in Isis' annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 and its most recent quarterly report on Form 10-Q, which are on file with the SEC. Copies of these and other documents are available from the Company.

In this press release, unless the context requires otherwise, "Isis," "Company," "we," "our," and "us" refers to Isis Pharmaceuticals and its subsidiaries, including Regulus Therapeutics Inc., its jointly owned subsidiary.

Isis Pharmaceuticals is a registered trademark of Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.  Regulus Therapeutics is a trademark of Regulus Therapeutics Inc.

SOURCE Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.