Hollis-Eden to Discuss Public/Private Partnerships at Commonwealth Business Forum

Business Wire, Sept 18, 2002

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

Commonwealth Business Forum 2002

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 18, 2002

Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:HEPH) today announced that Company management would make a presentation at the Commonwealth Business Forum being held in London England September 23-25, 2002. The Commonwealth Business Council organizes the Commonwealth Business Forum, which enables executives to interact with Heads of Government and Ministers on important policy issues, share good practices and develop partnerships and strategies in specific sectors. The Commonwealth is an organization of 54 countries that together account for 30% of the world's population.

The aim of the meeting is to promote Commonwealth business links and investment, and to foster collaboration between business and government. Themes of this year's meeting will include a variety of topics such as mobilization of international investment flows, managing globalization, and challenges for achieving the millennium investment development goals (which are being adversely affected by the spread of infectious diseases).

The Health Care and Services section of the meeting is scheduled to include presentations from GlaxoSmithKline and Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals. The presentations will focus on public/private partnerships between Commonwealth governments and pharmaceutical companies.

"We are delighted at the opportunity to present at this important conference," said Richard Hollis, Chairman and CEO of Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals. "We have been asked to speak about public/private partnerships as a vehicle to facilitate investment by governments and private industry to enhance the co-development of novel pharmaceuticals. Our most recent collaboration with the U.S. Department of Defense to co-develop our anti-radiation drug candidate, HE2100, is a good example of a government partnering with industry to potentially serve a special need. Much of the same rationale for the U.S. government's decision to support the development of our drug candidate for radiation protection can be used to support funding the co-development of other compounds in this series such as HE2000 in global infectious disease epidemics such as HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. We believe HE2000 represents a novel approach to treating infectious diseases that may be practical to implement on a global basis."

In February of 2002 Hollis-Eden entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the Department of Defense to co-develop HE2100 for the indication of protection from radiation exposure. Radiation exposure can occur from acts of terrorism or nuclear accident. Exposure to radiation disrupts cells in the body necessary in fighting infection. Injury and potential death can occur several days later from the exposed persons inability to fight off infection. The goal of Hollis-Eden's technology is to restore the body's immune fighting cells and appropriate immune response by reestablishing the natural signaling pathways that are disrupted when certain conditions dysregulate the immune system, such as radiation exposure, infection by a pathogen, stress, trauma, or the aging process itself. The compounds appear to act at the receptor level to regulate gene expression with the goal of restoring cellular homeostasis and health.

Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a development-stage pharmaceutical company based in San Diego, California, working to become the world leader in the development of a new class of investigational drugs known as Immune Regulating Hormones (IRH's). The goal of IRH therapy is to direct, through controlling gene expression, the production of key cytokines and enzymes that re-regulate immune and metabolic functions toward homeostasis, a profile that could be useful in a wide variety of diseases. The Company has a number of investigational IRHs under development, including HE2000, which is currently being studied in clinical trials for HIV/AIDS, malaria and hepatitis B. In addition, Hollis-Eden recently entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the United States Department of Defense to jointly develop another IRH, HE2100, as a radioprotectant (a drug that may potentially be used to protect a person from radiation injury due to a nuclear accident or event). Hollis-Eden is also developing an additional IRH, HE2200, for improving vaccine responses in the elderly and for cholesterol lowering. In addition, the Company has an option to acquire intellectual property rights to HE2500 through its relationship with Aeson Therapeutics, Inc. Aeson is currently conducting Phase II clinical trials with HE2500 for the treatment of hypertriglyceridemia. For more information on Hollis-Eden, contact the Company's website at www.holliseden.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements concerning the potential and prospects of the Company's drug discovery program and its drug candidates. Any statement describing a goal, expectation, intention or belief of the Company is a forward-looking statement and should be considered an at-risk statement. Such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, including the failure to successfully complete clinical trials, the Company's future capital needs, the Company's ability to obtain additional funding and required regulatory approvals, the development of competitive products by other companies, the ability to acquire Aeson Therapeutics and other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The actual results may differ materially from those contained in this press release.