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Biotech / Medical : INCR -- Incara Pharmaceuticals -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: scaram(o)uche who wrote (60)	12/26/2000 7:53:40 PM
From: tom pope	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 196

Obviously, I'm going to have to go back and find out what was wrong with my back-of-the-envelope calculation that told me that this was a good deal for INCR. The series C pfd pays for INCR's contribution to Incara Development, for a consideration of the potential issuance of 1.85MM shares of INCR. And INCR issues 1,109,510 shares for $4MM (taking the Series B as actual rather than potential). Net cash to INCR's balance sheet is $4MM. Adding that to the 9/30 figures, we have a company with 10.6MM cash and short term investments, against actual and potential shares o/s of 10.33MM. NOT including the cash that has flowed down to Incara Development. As Louis Jouvet said in Drole de Drame - Bizarre, bizarre. Unless if course I've missed something very obvious (which would not be at all bizarre)

To: scaram(o)uche who wrote (60)	12/26/2000 9:13:40 PM
From: Arthur Radley	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 196

Thank goodness I was away early today and didn't get an order in for INCR and when I returned I didn't like the trend....so I put a hold on until this end of year massacre stops. I have been thoroughly (as we would say here in Texas)"whupped" by several of my small-cap biotechs, as of late. Did have some strange activity in one of mine today...FLMLY. Traded pretty much flat all day, until the last 15 minutes of trading and then it popped 15%. They have a herpes drug before the French review panel and results could be forthcoming anyday. Have you ever looked at ALT? On the surface another interesting company along the lines of INCR and the cardio market.

To: scaram(o)uche who wrote (60)	12/28/2000 3:10:21 PM
From: scaram(o)uche	Respond to of 196

MetaPhore Pharmaceuticals Raises Further $13 Million Developing New Class of Antioxidant Drugs to Treat Wide Range of Diseases ST. LOUIS, Dec. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Privately held MetaPhore Pharmaceuticals announced today that it has completed a $13 million Series B private funding round in a placement of preferred stock. To date, MetaPhore has raised more than $20 million through two rounds of private funding. The company is developing a proprietary family of drugs potentially able to combat a wide range of diseases and conditions more effectively and with fewer side effects. Included are diseases associated with aging such as autoimmune disorders like Parkinson's and rheumatoid arthritis, multiple types of cancer, as well as conditions such as pain and inflammation. The drugs are based on a group of metal compounds that mimic the body's primary, anti-oxidant defense mechanism -- a family of enzymes called superoxide dismutase (SOD), an essential protein mapped in the body's DNA. The company holds patents on the compounds. When the body produces too much of an oxygen-derived molecule called a superoxide or free radical, cell structures and even genes are damaged -- much like oxidation causes metal to rust. The SOD enzyme removes superoxide free radicals by converting them into hydrogen peroxide and oxygen. Hydrogen peroxide is critical to the healthy functioning of white blood cells. It also plays a role in the normal process of cell death, known as apoptosis. MetaPhore is exploring the use of its SOD mimic as a means of killing malignant cancer cells by triggering apoptosis. Malignant cancer cells, which are deficient in SOD enzyme, are essentially immortal cells that multiply and spread throughout the body. The company's first drug candidate is targeted at cancer, where it is proceeding toward an Investigational New Drug (IND) submission to the FDA by year-end. The second drug candidate, for acute and chronic pain, is expected to move into clinical trials in the first half of 2001. "SOD mimetics have major medical potential, based on the growing body of antioxidant and disease research. For more than twenty years, we have understood the free radical fighting power of the body's natural SOD enzyme, but until recently, we have been unable to reproduce the beneficial effect in a stable and selective drug form," said Dennis Riley, MetaPhore's Vice President of Research & Development. Background on MetaPhore and its SOD Mimic Just like the antioxidant vitamins E and C, MetaPhore's SOD mimetics remove free radicals. However, the metal-based mimetic compounds do so at a greatly enhanced rate (mopping up more than 20 million superoxide molecules per second) and in a very selective manner. Unlike naturally derived SOD enzyme, the metal-based mimetic is well suited for use as a drug because it has a much lower molecular weight, is much more stable, has a longer half-life, and does not appear to elicit an immune response in the body. Attempts to use natural, bovine-derived SOD enzymes in clinical applications were frustrated by the natural form's inherent instability and the body's allergic reaction to its introduction. It also had a very short half-life, lasting intact in the body only about fifteen minutes. Numerous animal studies over the last few years have confirmed the disease fighting potential of MetaPhore's SOD mimetics. The October 1999 issue of Science published research documenting that MetaPhore's SOD mimetic substantially reduced tissue damage due to inflammation and reperfusion -- the latter involving the return of blood flow to an organ following removal of blockade, such as after a heart attack. A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in August 2000 indicated potential new treatments to counter the perplexing and often fatal blood pressure drop that accompanies septic shock. The company has also recently announced that it has received a Small Business and Innovation Research grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to conduct studies aimed at developing potential new treatments for managing acute and chronic pain. Among the other areas where MetaPhore is moving its SOD mimetics program forward are dermatitis, rheumatoid arthritis and stroke. The company believes its novel approach could result in treatments with unmatched therapeutic value, either on their own or as adjunct therapy with existing medications, and with minimal side effects. Included in the second round of financing, led by Stifel Nicolaus CAPCO Fund, are Clayton Capital, Gryphon Holdings and MetaPhore's original investor Belleau Development. Statements in this press release that are not strictly historical are "forward looking" statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The actual results may differ from those projected in the forward looking statement due to risks and uncertainties that exist in the company's operations, development efforts and business environment. CONTACT: Punnie Donohue for MetaPhore Pharmaceuticals, 314-290-2014, or pdonohue@kupperparker.com. SOURCE MetaPhore Pharmaceuticals