ProMetic Signs Terms of Strategic Agreement for PBI-1402 and PBI-4419 With Allist Pharmaceuticals of China

ProMetic Life Sciences Inc. (TSX:PLI) 



--  Allist to fund and accelerate the development programs for PBI-1402 and
    PBI-4419 

--  Allist secures exclusive commercial rights for the Chinese market 

--  ProMetic retains rights to data for other markets, representing savings
    of over US $10 M in future development costs; 

--  PBI-1402 clinical development will be further advanced for chemotherapy-
    induced anemia and cancer related anemia indications 

--  PBI-4419 will be developed for fibrotic disease indications 

--  Agreement includes US$ 59 M in milestone payments to ProMetic as well as
    royalties on sales in China 



ProMetic Life Sciences Inc. (TSX:PLI) ("ProMetic") and Allist Pharmaceuticals,
Inc. ("Allist") announced today that they have entered into a strategic
agreement to develop and commercialize ProMetic's drug candidates PBI-1402 and
PBI-4419 in China. This agreement strengthens ProMetic's development plan for
these assets in other markets.


Allist will fund the development costs required for the regulatory approval in
China for the two products. As part of the conditions for the rights granted,
Allist undertakes to perform development activities according to standards
meeting FDA requirements, which will then allow ProMetic to have full access to
and use the data generated by Allist for markets outside China. This represents
an investment in the programs well in excess of US$10 M. Allist will retain the
rights for the Chinese market for PBI-1402 for the chemotherapy-induced anemia
("CIA") and cancer related anemia ("CRA") indications and for PBI-4419 for
fibrotic diseases. 


"We are very excited about this strategic relationship as it capitalizes on our
respective companies' strengths," stated Dr. Jianhui Guo, Chief Executive
Officer of Allist. "ProMetic's research & development program has generated very
promising First-in-Class drugs to address unmet medical needs and Allist will
accelerate the development of these two drug candidates. Our developmental
capabilities provide for a natural, complementary and strategic fit with
ProMetic." 


Mr. Pierre Laurin, ProMetic's President and Chief Executive Officer commented:
"This enabling agreement is perfectly aligned with ProMetic's development
strategy for its Therapeutics business unit: (1) It leverages the synergies and
the investment made by Allist in the development program in that we can use this
critical data for other lucrative markets; (2) It enables us to accelerate the
development of these valuable drug candidates on a cash neutral basis; and (3)
It provides ProMetic with a solid partner for the ever-expanding Chinese market,
expected to become the 4th largest domestic pharmaceutical market by 2013."


In addition to the funding commitments and the execution of the development
program, Allist has agreed to pay ProMetic performance milestones totaling US$59
M and royalties on future products sales. Upon ProMetic completing a technology
transfer for the two drug candidates this quarter, Allist will proceed with the
scale-up of the manufacturing processes and will initiate clinical trials as
well as other pivotal development activities.


"Allist is one of the few pharmaceutical companies in China focused on
developing innovative therapeutics as opposed to generic drugs," stated Dr. Tom
Chen, ProMetic's Vice-President Product and Asia Pacific Development. "Allist is
very well funded and will soon have capacity to produce over 250 metric tons of
pharmaceutical bulk active drugs. Allist is not only a solid partner to develop
and commercialize the products in China, but this relationship strengthens
ProMetic's position outside China with expanded manufacturing capabilities. For
instance, ProMetic will have the option to access large supply manufacturing
capacity for PBI-1402 and PBI-4419 for markets outside China," added Dr. Chen.


ProMetic and Allist will finalize and execute definitive documentation and
relevant development work plans regarding this strategic agreement within sixty
(60) days from the date hereof.


More on PBI-1402 and PBI-4419 

PBI-1402 is a first-in-class, orally active, non-EPO receptor erythropoietic
regulating agent ("ERA"), which offers significant advantages in the treatment
of anemia in cancer patients. With proven anti-cancer activity and no risk to
bring red blood cells or hemoglobin to unsafe levels, PBI-1402 offers the
potential to become the safest drug to treat anemia in cancer patients. In a
phase Ib/IIa clinical trial performed in patients suffering of anemia induced by
chemotherapy, 93% of patients did not require blood transfusion. PBI-4419 is a
first-in-class, orally active, more potent third generation analogue of
PBI-1402. PBI-4419 is ProMetic's lead candidate drug in development for the
treatment of various inflammatory and fibrosis conditions. 


About Allist Pharmaceuticals, Inc. 

Allist Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (http://www.allist.com.cn/allist_en/) is engaged in
discovery, development and commercialization of novel pharmaceutical products
for human health. The mission of the company is to be a leading innovator of
therapeutic drugs devoted to human health and human life worldwide. 


Founded in May of 2004, Allist's Research and Development Center is located in
Zhangjiang Hi-tech Park, Shanghai and is focused on new chemical entities and
drug delivery systems in the fields of cardiovascular diseases, acid-related
diseases and cancers. 


At present, taking advantage of a rapidly growing Chinese biomedical and
pharmaceutical industry, Allist pushes forward with developing technology and
improving human health strategies to realize its goals of becoming one of the
leaders in the global pharmaceutical industry. 


About ProMetic Life Sciences Inc. 

ProMetic Life Sciences Inc. (www.prometic.com) is a biopharmaceutical company
specialized in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of a variety
of commercial applications derived from its proprietary Mimetic Ligand(TM)
technology. This technology is used in large-scale purification of biologics and
the elimination of pathogens. ProMetic is also active in therapeutic drug
development with the mission to bring to market effective, innovative, lower
cost, less toxic products for the treatment of hematology, cancer, inflammation
and fibrosis. Its drug discovery platform is focused on replacing complex,
expensive proteins with synthetic "drug-like" protein mimetics. Headquartered in
Montreal (Canada), ProMetic has R&D facilities in the UK, the U.S. and Canada,
manufacturing facilities in the UK and business development activities in the
U.S., Europe, Asia and in the Middle-East.


Forward Looking Statements 

This press release contains forward-looking statements about ProMetic's
objectives, strategies and businesses that involve risks and uncertainties.
These statements are "forward-looking" because they are based on our current
expectations about the markets we operate in and on various estimates and
assumptions. Actual events or results may differ materially from those
anticipated in these forward-looking statements if known or unknown risks affect
our business, or if our estimates or assumptions turn out to be inaccurate. Such
risks and assumptions include, but are not limited to, ProMetic's ability to
develop, manufacture, and successfully commercialize value-added pharmaceutical
products, the availability of funds and resources to pursue R&D projects, the
successful and timely completion of clinical studies, the ability of ProMetic to
take advantage of business opportunities in the pharmaceutical industry,
uncertainties related to the regulatory process and general changes in economic
conditions. You will find a more detailed assessment of the risks that could
cause actual events or results to materially differ from our current
expectations on page 24 of ProMetic's Annual Information Form for the year ended
December 31, 2009, under the heading "Risk Factors". As a result, we cannot
guarantee that any forward-looking statement will materialize. We assume no
obligation to update any forward-looking statement even if new information
becomes available, as a result of future events or for any other reason, unless
required by applicable securities laws and regulations. All amounts are in
Canadian dollars unless stated otherwise.