Altravax Inc, Acquires Revolutionary Technology Platform for Vaccine Development

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact:
James B. Burgum Arthur Ventures, LLC
+1 (701) 232-3521 james@arthurventures.com

AltraVax, Inc. Acquires Revolutionary Technology Platform for Vaccine Development
DNA Shuffling Offers Potential of Rapid Vaccine Development, Broader Protection

FARGO, ND – February 18, 2010 – AltraVax, Inc., a new, privately-held biopharmaceutical company, has acquired a vaccine development technology package from Maxygen, Inc. (Nasdaq: MAXY) that gives AltraVax an exclusive license to develop vaccines for infectious diseases and is targeting influenza, a treatment for hepatitis B and HIV.

Under the terms of the licensing agreement, AltraVax has exclusive rights to use Maxygen's proprietary MolecularBreeding™ technology platform in its infectious disease vaccine development programs, subject to rights retained by Maxygen. The technology can significantly compress vaccine development timelines, leading to new vaccine possibilities that have the potential to improve and protect human health globally.

Arthur Ventures Growth Fund, LLC is the lead investor in AltraVax. "We're excited to be a part of something that can have such a tremendous impact," said James Burgum, managing director of Arthur Ventures. "The proprietary technology licensed from Maxygen will enable AltraVax to develop a new generation of vaccines in a shorter time period and with the promise of better protection."

The proprietary MolecularBreeding™ technology is part of a broader technology platform of directed molecular evolution that can be applied to the development of new and improved vaccines. Vaccine candidates identified by this process can provide broad protection against many different strains of viruses responsible for a given disease. Dr. Robert Whalen, Chief Scientific Officer at AltraVax, is one of the leaders in the application of MolecularBreeding™ technology to vaccine discovery and development.

"Some current vaccine development processes may not be suitable to today's environment of rapidly emerging, and in many cases mutating, viruses and other pathogens," said Dr. Whalen. "This robust technology can now be directly applied to the identification and development of both novel and improved products that meet the vaccine industry's current and future needs."

Dr. Leonard Ruiz, who has 30 years of domestic and international experience in the biotechnology, biopharmaceutical and food industries, serves as CEO of AltraVax.

"AltraVax plans to focus on key disease targets and to use the MolecularBreeding™ technology platform as part of a number of laboratory tools to accelerate vaccine development," said Dr. Ruiz. "We expect to be in human clinical trials within the next 12 to 18 months."

About AltraVax, Inc.

AltraVax, Inc. is a privately-held biopharmaceutical company with headquarters in Fargo, North Dakota and research laboratories in Sunnyvale, California. AltraVax was founded based on the strength of a proven technology that can accelerate nature's natural genetic diversity at a molecular level.

About Arthur Ventures Growth Fund, LLC

Arthur Ventures Growth Fund, LLC is a venture capital fund that seeks to identify and invest in well-managed businesses with potential for strong growth to yield significant return on investment for both business and investor.

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