TOORAK, Australia I April 10, 2013 I Antisense Therapeutics Limited (“ANP” or “the Company”) is pleased to report that dosing of patients has commenced as scheduled in the Phase II clinical trial of ATL1103 for the growth disorder, acromegaly.

The ATL1103 Phase II trial is a randomised, open-label, parallel group study of the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and efficacy of two subcutaneous dosing regimens of ATL1103 in 24 adult patients with acromegaly. The trial is being conducted at 11 trial sites in the UK, Spain and France. The first patient dosed is from one of the Spanish trial sites.

Five trial sites in the UK and two in Spain have now been initiated and are ready to recruit patients into the study. ANP has also received regulatory approval in France and expects the French sites to be initiated during April/May.

Antisense Therapeutics Limited CEO and Managing Director, Mark Diamond said: “We are very pleased to have commenced the dosing of patients in our Phase II study. The commencement of dosing is always a significant milestone in any clinical trial and is the culmination of a huge amount of work and dedicated effort by the ANP team, our expert advisors, consultants and contractor network. We look forward to a steady rate of enrollment of patients into the trial and to providing further updates on the study as it progresses.”

ATL1103 Phase II trial is a randomised, open-label, parallel group study of the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and efficacy of two subcutaneous dosing regimens of ATL1103 in adult patients with acromegaly dosed with ATL1103 for 13 weeks (3 months) with two months of follow up. The primary endpoints or main purposes of the trial as listed on the trial protocol are (i) to evaluate the safety and tolerability of ATL1103 in patients with acromegaly, and (ii) to evaluate the single dose and multiple dose pharmacokinetic profiles of ATL1103 via the subcutaneous route in patients with acromegaly. A secondary, but important endpoint that is also on the trial protocol is the evaluation of ATL1103’s effect on serum insulin like growth factor I (IGF-I) levels in patients. Reduction of elevated levels of serum IGF-I to normal is the therapeutic endpoint in the treatment of acromegaly. ATL1103 is a second generation antisense drug designed to block growth hormone receptor (GHr) expression thereby reducing levels of the hormone insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) in the blood and is a potential treatment for diseases associated with excessive growth hormone and IGF-I action. These diseases include acromegaly, an abnormal growth disorder of organs, face, hands and feet, diabetic retinopathy, a common disease of the eye and a major cause of blindness, diabetic nephropathy, a common disease of the kidney and major cause of kidney failure, and some forms of cancer. Acromegalic patients are known to have significantly higher blood IGF-I levels than healthy individuals. Reduction of these levels to normal is accepted by clinical authorities as the primary marker of an effective drug treatment for the disease. GHr is a clinically validated target in the treatment of acromegaly. In the case of diabetic retinopathy, published clinical studies have shown that treatments producing a reduction in IGF-I levels retarded the progression of the disease and improve vision in patients. Scientific papers have been published on the suppression of blood IGF-I levels in mice (Tachas et al., 2006, J Endocrinol 189, 147-54) and inhibition of retinopathy in a mouse retinopathy model (Wilkinson- Berka et al., 2007, Molecular Vision 13, 1529- 38;)using an antisense drug to the GHr. ANP have also reported that ATL1103 suppressed circulating levels of IGF-I in primates.In a Phase I study in normal volunteers, ATL1103 was assessed as being safe and well tolerated, while also demonstrating a preliminary indication of drug activity including suppression of IGF-I. ATL1103 commercialisation is covered by patents to at least 2024, with the potential for extensions up to 2029 in some countries and 2030 in the US.

POSTAL ADDRESS: 6 WALLACE AVENUE, TOORAK VIC 3142 REGISTERED ADDRESS: LEVEL 1, 10 WALLACE AVENUE TOORAK VIC 3142 AUSTRALIA TEL . +61 (3) 9827 8999 FAX +61 (3) 9827 1166 WEB WWW.ANTISENSE.COM.AU

ANTISENSE THERAPEUTICS LIMITED ABN 41 095 060 745

1 | Page Acromegaly is a serious chronic life threatening disease triggered by excess secretion of growth hormone (GH) by benign pituitary tumours. Oversupply of GH over stimulates liver, fat and kidney cells, through their GH receptors, to produce excess levels of (IGF-I) in the blood manifesting in abnormal growth of the face, hands and feet, and enlargement of body organs including liver, kidney and heart. The primary treatments for acromegaly are to surgically remove the pituitary gland and/or drug therapy to normalize GH and serum IGF-I levels. In North America and Europe there are approximately 85,000 acromegaly patients with about half requiring drug therapy. Cost of drug therapy ranges from approximatelyA$30,000/annum to over A$60,000/annum depending on the treatment. Antisense Therapeutics Limited (ASX: ANP) is an Australian publicly listed biopharmaceutical drug discovery and development company. Its mission is to create, develop and commercialise second generation antisense pharmaceuticals for large unmet markets. ANP has 4 products in its development pipeline that it has in-licensed from Isis Pharmaceuticals Inc., world leaders in antisense drug development and commercialisation – ATL1102 (injection) which has successfully completed a Phase II efficacy and safety trial, significantly reducing the number of brain lesions in patients with multiple sclerosis, ATL1103 a second-generation antisense drug designed to block GHr production and thereby lower blood IGF-I levels and is in clinical development as a potential treatment for growth and other GH-IGF-I disorders, ATL1102 (inhaled) which is at the pre-clinical research stage as a potential treatment for asthma and ATL1101 a second-generation antisense drug at the pre-clinical stage being investigated as a potential treatment for cancer. Contact Information : Website: www.antisense.com.au 

SOURCE: Antisense Therapeutics