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Sanko Junyaku Co., Ltd.
FUJIREBIO INC.

°®¶¹´«Ã½. (Headquarters: Tokyo, President and CEO: Haruo Naito) and its diagnostic subsidiary company Sanko Junyaku Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tokyo, President: Masao Jinbo) announced today the launch of LUMIPULSE® KL-6 EISAI and LUMIPULSE® PRESTO KL-6 EISAI, new KL-6 test kits that detects KL-6, a marker of interstitial pneumonia, using LUMIPULSE® systems. LUMIPULSE® systems are diagnostic equipments using an automated chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay system marketed by FUJIREBIO INC. (Headquarters: Tokyo, President: Hiromasa Suzuki). The new kits will be made available on March 17, 2008 in Japan.

KL-6 is a serum marker that has high specificity for interstitial pneumonia. Currently, Sanko Junyaku markets two KL-6 test kits, EITEST® KL-6 (sandwich enzyme immunoassay method) and PICOLUMI® KL-6 (electrochemiluminescence immunoassay method). FUJIREBIO markets three LUMIPULS® systems, LUMIPULSE®f, LUMIPULSE®S, and LUMIPULSE ® PrestoⅡ. Today, more than 1,000 LUMIPULSE® systems are used in medical institutions throughout Japan. The new KL-6 test kits for the LUMIPULSE® systems will further increase the convenience in diagnosis for interstitial pneumonia.

In accordance with the joint research agreement signed on October 19, 2006 among Eisai, Sanko Junyaku and FUJIREBIO, the three companies co-developed the new KL-6 test kits, and obtained manufacturing and marketing approval for the products. The kits will be manufactured by FUJIREBIO, and be marketed by Sanko Junyaku under marketing support by Eisai Co. Ltd.

Cryptogenic interstitial pneumonia and drug-induced pneumonia are common types of interstitial pneumonia. Recently, the number of drug-induced pneumonia cases reported has been increasing, which raised the significance and public concerns about the disease. Through this new test kits, Eisai, Sanko Junyaku and FUJIREBIO will continue to make contributions to increasing the benefits of the patients and their families.

[Please refer to the following note for the product information and glossary]

An automated diagnostic equipment using chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay (CLEIA)system for detecting and measuring minute substances in vivo.

Human lungs are made up of multiple, small grape-like structures called alveoli, where the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide takes place. Inflammation of alveoli causes pneumonia, which can be classified into two groups based on the region where the inflammation occurs: interstitial pneumonia, in which inflammation occurs in the walls of the alveoli (interstitium), and alveolar pneumonia (commonly-termed pneumonia), in which inflammation occurs in the airway between bronchi and alveoli. Differential diagnosis is required since treatment methods for these two types of pneumonia are different.

KL-6 is expressed on the surface of type Ⅱ alveolar epithelial cells which consist of the walls of the alveolus (interstitium). In interstitial pneumonia, such type Ⅱ alveolar epithelial cells are excessively formed and the KL-6 level increases. Measurement of serum KL-6 level is effective for the diagnosis of interstitial pneumonia since KL-6 extravasate into blood.