Morphotek Announces Multi-Year, Research Collaboration Agreement with Amgen to Optimize Expression of Antibodies

Exton, PA -- April 18, 2005 -- Morphotek Inc. today announced that it has entered into a multi-year Research Collaboration Agreement with Amgen Inc. to apply Morphotek's proprietary MORPHODOMA® technology to Amgen's proprietary cell lines to generate high-titer antibody producing cell lines for scaleable manufacturing.

Under the terms of the non-exclusive, multi-year agreement, Morphotek will receive funding to support research efforts to optimize Amgen cell lines. Morphotek will also receive research fees and milestone payments upon the successful achievement of program goals and the advancement of product candidates through clinical development. Amgen is the seventh sublicensee of Morphotek's patented technology for the development of manufacturing grade production cell lines that express high levels of antibodies.

"We are delighted with the opportunity to work with Amgen using our MORPHODOMA® technology," stated Nicholas C. Nicolaides, President and Chief Executive Officer of Morphotek. "This exciting collaboration underscores the value that our platform provides companies by improving the efficiency and outcomes of biological product development."

Morphotek is a biotechnology company focused on the generation of proprietary organisms for product discovery and development. Morphotek has a validated and patented platform technology called morphogenics that rapidly enhances the natural process of genetic evolution within a targeted host to yield variants with novel, commercially important output traits. This versatile technology has been successfully applied to microbes, plants, and mammals to yield genetically diverse offspring that are suitable for pharmaceutical and agricultural product development in the areas of antibody and protein therapeutics, high-titer protein manufacturing, and drug target discovery. Internally, Morphotek employs its morphogenics technology to develop optimized therapeutic antibodies for the treatment of cancer, inflammatory and infectious diseases. For further company information visit www.morphotek.com

For Information Contact:

Kimberly Ilgenfritz
Executive Director, Business Development & Marketing
Morphotek, Inc.
Phone: 610-423-6147