Sareum Holdings PLC

("Sareum" or "Company")

Strategic Review

Sareum Holdings plc (AIM:SAR), the specialist structure-based drug discovery business, announces that the Board is undertaking a strategic review to consider how best to take the business forward.

Sareum, which was formed in August 2003, employs a structure-based approach to the discovery of new drugs for the treatment of cancer.  In parallel, the Company provides specialist drug discovery capabilities to partners in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.  The Company has historically been funded via fee-for-service-contract revenues and funds raised through equity issues.

The strategic review has been initiated by the Sareum Board for a number of reasons, inter alia;

·         Difficult trading conditions resulting from a reticence in the research service sector, particularly in the USA, to use cash reserves to sponsor new research activities until financial conditions improve.  Combined with a high level of M&A activity within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector, this has tended to interfere with the decision making process for the initiation of new research programs.  This was highlighted in Sareum’s interim results statement for the six months ended 31 December 2007 which was released on 6 March 2008.

·         The current depressed share price in common with most "small cap" plcs; and

·         The Board has received approaches from parties interested in the Company’s drug discovery business and in-house cancer drug discovery programs. 

The Sareum Board will be considering a number of options including; the sale of all or part of the business, the raising of additional equity funds, entering into partnering arrangements, or the acquisition of a suitable business to give the Company additional critical mass.  The Board has appointed Grant Thornton Corporate Finance as financial advisers to assist with this process.

The Sareum Board intends to complete this evaluation process to ensure that the future strategy adopted is in the best interests of both shareholders and employees.  As and when a decision on the optimum future strategy for the Company is reached, if appropriate, an announcement will be made.

Accordingly, under the rules of the Takeover Code, Sareum is now in an offer period.  Sareum confirms, pursuant to Rule 2.10 of the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers, that its issued share capital as at 2 May 2008 comprised 818,097,713 ordinary shares of 0.025 pence each.  The shares are traded on AIM under International Securities Identification Number GB00B02RFS12.

Dealing Disclosure Requirements

Under the provisions of Rule 8.3 of the Takeover Code ("the Code"), if any person is, or becomes, "interested" (directly or indirectly) in 1% or more of any class of "relevant securities" of Sareum, all "dealings" in any "relevant securities" of that company (including by means of an option in respect of, or a derivative referenced to, any such "relevant securities") must be publicly disclosed by no later than 3.30 pm (London time) on the London business day following the date of the relevant transaction.  This requirement will continue until the date on which the offer becomes, or is declared, unconditional as to acceptances, lapses or is otherwise withdrawn or on which the "offer period" otherwise ends.  If two or more persons act together pursuant to an agreement or understanding, whether formal or informal, to acquire an “interest” in "relevant securities" of Sareum, they will be deemed to be a single person for the purpose of Rule 8.3.

Under the provisions of Rule 8.1 of the Code, all "dealings" in “relevant securities" of Sareum by any offeror, or by any of its respective "associates", must be disclosed by no later than 12.00 noon (London time) on the London business day following the date of the relevant transaction.

A disclosure table, giving details of the companies in whose "relevant securities" "dealings" should be disclosed, and the number of such securities in issue, can be found on the Takeover Panel’s website at www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk.

 "Interests in securities" arise, in summary, when a person has long economic exposure, whether conditional or absolute, to changes in the price of securities. In particular, a person will be treated as having an "interest" by virtue of the ownership or control of securities, or by virtue of any option in respect of, or derivative referenced to, securities.

Terms in quotation marks are defined in the Code, which can also be found on the Panel’s website.  If you are in any doubt as to whether or not you are required to disclose a "dealing" under Rule 8, you should consult the Panel.

ENDS

For further information:

Sareum Holdings plc                                                                  01223 497700

Tim Mitchell, Chief Executive Officer

Buchanan Communications                                                        020 7466 5000

Tim Anderson, Mary-Jane Johnson

Grant Thornton Corporate Finance                                              

Charles E Cattaneo                                                        07774 276512

Philip Secrett,                                                                020 7383 5100

Colin Aaronson                                                    

Sareum Holdings plc is a structure-based drug discovery business headquartered in Cambridge, UK. The Company was formed in August 2003 to discover new drugs for the treatment of cancer.  Sareum’s unique approach aims to halve the time it takes to discover new drug candidates.

A structure-based approach to drug discovery relies on knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of the proteins that cause disease.  Once the structure is known, potential drugs are designed to ‘lock-in’ to the protein with the aim of reversing or arresting a disease’s progression.  Knowledge of the structure of the potential drugs and how they ‘lock-in’ to their target protein assists greatly in the development of high-quality drug candidates.  Determining structure is a complex task and requires leading-edge equipment and experienced staff.  Sareum’s approach to structure determination utilises its proprietary protein expression platform in order to produce multiple recombinant proteins that accelerate structure determination using x-ray crystallography.

Once the structure is determined, the Company’s innovative fragment screening platform is used to identify novel chemical templates designed to interact with the target protein.  Sareum then uses its high-throughput medicinal chemistry platform to rapidly optimise these molecules and develop the most promising into potential drug candidates.

Sareum aims to successfully deliver drug candidates for licensing to larger pharmaceutical companies at the pre-clinical or early clinical trials stage.  This is funded by provision of its specialist drug discovery capabilities to partners in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

Sareum joined the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in October 2004 and trades under the symbol SAR.  For further information, please visit www.sareum.co.uk

  24 April 2008

SAREUM HOLDINGS PLC

(“Sareum” or “the Company”)

Notification of Shareholder Interest

Sareum Holdings plc (AIM: SAR), the specialist structure-based drug discovery business, is pleased to announce that it was informed on 23 April 2008 that Mr Joseph Edward Craven has purchased 14,200,000 Sareum ordinary shares of 0.025p as part of the placing announced on 14 April, 2008. Mr Craven now holds 38,000,000 Sareum ordinary shares representing 4.6 per cent of the Company's total voting rights. 

Commenting on the announcement, Sareum’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Tim Mitchell, said: “We are very pleased that Mr Craven has chosen to increase his shareholding in Sareum.”

Mr Joseph Craven added: “I have been an investor in Sareum since 2005 and have great confidence in the Company’s management team and long term strategy.  I am pleased to be increasing my holding in this business.”

For further information:

About Sareum Holdings plc

Sareum Holdings plc is a structure-based drug discovery business headquartered in Cambridge, UK. The Company was formed in August 2003 to discover new drugs for the treatment of cancer.  Sareum's unique approach aims to halve the time it takes to discover new drug candidates.

A structure-based approach to drug discovery relies on knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of the proteins that cause disease.  Once the structure is known, potential drugs are designed to 'lock-in' to the protein with the aim of reversing or arresting a disease's progression.  Knowledge of the structure of the potential drugs and how they 'lock-in' to their target protein assists greatly in the development of high-quality drug candidates. Determining structure is a complex task and requires leading-edge equipment and experienced staff.  Sareum's approach to structure determination utilises its proprietary protein expression platform in order to produce multiple recombinant proteins that accelerate structure determination using x-ray crystallography.

Once the structure is determined, the Company's innovative fragment screening platform is used to identify novel chemical templates designed to interact with the target protein.  Sareum then uses its high-throughput medicinal chemistry platform to rapidly optimise these molecules and develop the most promising into potential drug candidates.

Sareum aims to successfully deliver drug candidates for licensing to larger pharmaceutical companies at the pre-clinical or early clinical trials stage. This is funded by provision of its specialist drug discovery capabilities to partners in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

Sareum joined the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in October 2004 and trades under the symbol SAR.  For further information, please visit www.sareum.co.uk

  14 April 2008

SAREUM HOLDINGS PLC

(“Sareum” or “the Company”)

Fundraising

Sareum Holdings plc (AIM: SAR), the specialist structure-based drug discovery business, is pleased to announce that it has agreed to place, through its broker, Dowgate Capital Stockbrokers Limited, 219,400,000 ordinary shares of 0.025p nominal value ("Ordinary Shares") at a price of 0.25p per share to raise £548,500 before expenses. The funds raised from this share issue will be used to provide additional working capital for the Company.

Following the issue of these shares, the Company's issued share capital will consist of 818,097,713 Ordinary Shares. The Company does not hold any ordinary shares in Treasury. Therefore the total number of ordinary shares with voting rights is now 818,097,713. This figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the Company under the Financial Services Authority's Disclosure and Transparency Rules.

Application has been made for the admission of 219,400,000 shares to trading on AIM with admission expected to take place on 18 April 2008.

Commenting on the announcement, Sareum's Chief Executive Officer, Dr Tim Mitchell said: "We are pleased to have been able to raise funds in difficult market conditions. This placing will provide valuable additional funds for the business."

For further information:

Notes for editors:

About Sareum Holdings plc

Sareum Holdings plc is a structure-based drug discovery business headquartered in Cambridge, UK. The Company was formed in August 2003 to discover new drugs for the treatment of cancer.  Sareum’s unique approach aims to halve the time it takes to discover new drug candidates.

A structure-based approach to drug discovery relies on knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of the proteins that cause disease.  Once the structure is known, potential drugs are designed to ‘lock-in’ to the protein with the aim of reversing or arresting a disease’s progression.  Knowledge of the structure of the potential drugs and how they ‘lock-in’ to their target protein assists greatly in the development of high-quality drug candidates.  Determining structure is a complex task and requires leading-edge equipment and experienced staff.  Sareum’s approach to structure determination utilises its proprietary protein expression platform in order to produce multiple recombinant proteins that accelerate structure determination using x-ray crystallography.

Once the structure is determined, the Company’s innovative fragment screening platform is used to identify novel chemical templates designed to interact with the target protein.  Sareum then uses its high-throughput medicinal chemistry platform to rapidly optimise these molecules and develop the most promising into potential drug candidates.

Sareum aims to successfully deliver drug candidates for licensing to larger pharmaceutical companies at the pre-clinical or early clinical trials stage.  This is funded by provision of its specialist drug discovery capabilities to partners in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

Sareum joined the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in October 2004 and trades under the symbol SAR.  For further information, please visit www.sareum.co.uk

10 April 2008

SAREUM HOLDINGS PLC

(“Sareum” or the “Company”)

Sareum to Present Chk1 Cancer Research Programme

at AACR Annual Meeting 2008

Sareum Holdings plc (Sareum) (AIM: SAR), the specialist structure-based drug discovery business, is pleased to announce that it will present the latest results from its joint research collaboration with The Institute of Cancer Research and Cancer Research Technology Ltd. at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) annual meeting, to be held on April 12-16 2008 in San Diego, CA.

Dr John Reader, VP of Chemistry at Sareum, will present a poster entitled “Identification and structure-guided optimization of novel inhibitors of Checkpoint kinase 1 (Chk1) through combined biochemical and crystallographic screening” on Sunday April 13.

Chk1, the target of the joint research collaboration, is a key component of a biochemical pathway responsible for preventing the effectiveness of traditional cancer therapeutics such as chemotherapy. The aim of the collaboration, first announced in July 2005, is to develop novel cancer treatments with the potential to have efficacy against tumours that do not respond to chemotherapy and/or fewer adverse side-effects as a result of lower doses of chemotherapy being required. In August 2006 the collaboration announced the discovery of a novel compound series which showed activity in cancer cell models, and in February 2007 it was announced that a series of patent applications had been filed to secure the intellectual property rights related to compounds developed in the collaboration.

Sareum has used its expertise in fragment and structure-based drug discovery to identify novel chemical compounds effective against Chk1.  These compound series have been rapidly progressed towards drug candidates utilising Sareum’s high throughput medicinal chemistry and structure determination platforms combined with the drug screening, specialist cancer biology and medicinal chemistry expertise at The Cancer Research UK Centre for Cancer Therapeutics at The Institute. 

Commenting on the announcement, Sareum’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Tim Mitchell, said: “We have made excellent progress in this highly successful cancer research collaboration and we are delighted to be making our first public presentations of these advances. These collaborations endorse Sareum’s technology and the experience of our team.”

Notes for editors:

About Checkpoint Kinase 1

Many known cancer treatments cause DNA damage by either physically modifying the cell’s DNA or disrupting vital cellular processes that can affect the fidelity of DNA replication and cell division, such as DNA metabolism, DNA synthesis, DNA transcription and microtubule spindle formation.  Such treatments include for example, radiotherapy, which causes DNA strand breaks, and a variety of chemotherapeutic agents including topoisomerase inhibitors, antimetabolites, DNA-alkylating agents, and platinum-containing cytotoxic drugs.  A significant limitation to these genotoxic treatments is drug resistance.  One of the most important mechanisms leading to this resistance is attributed to activation of cell cycle checkpoints, giving the tumour cell time to repair damaged DNA.  By abrogating a particular cell cycle checkpoint, or inhibiting a particular form of DNA repair, it may therefore be possible to circumvent tumour cell resistance to the genotoxic agents and augment tumour cell death induced by DNA damage, thus increasing the therapeutic index of these cancer treatments.

Checkpoint Kinase 1 (Chk1) is a serine/threonine kinase involved in regulating cell cycle checkpoint signals that are activated in response to DNA damage and errors in DNA caused by defective replication.  Chk1 transduces these signals through phosphorylation of substrates involved in a number of cellular activities including cell cycle arrest and DNA repair.  Two key substrates of Chk1 are the Cdc25A and Cdc25C phosphatases that dephosphorylate CDK1 leading to its activation, which is a requirement for exit from G2 into mitosis (M phase).  Phosphorylation of Cdc25C and the related Cdc25A by Chk1 blocks their ability to activate CDK1, thus preventing the cell from exiting G2 into M phase.  The role of Chk1 in the DNA damage-induced G2 cell cycle checkpoint has been demonstrated in a number of studies where Chk1 function has been knocked out.

The reliance of the DNA damage-induced G2 checkpoint upon Chk1 provides one example of a therapeutic strategy for cancer treatment, involving targeted inhibition of Chk1.  Upon DNA damage, the p53 tumour suppressor protein is stabilised and activated to give a p53-dependent G1 arrest, leading to apoptosis or DNA repair.  Over half of all cancers are functionally defective for p53, which can make them resistant to genotoxic cancer treatments such as ionising radiation and certain forms of chemotherapy.  These p53 deficient cells fail to arrest at the G1 checkpoint or undergo apoptosis or DNA repair, and consequently may be more reliant on the G2 checkpoint for viability and replication fidelity.  Abrogation of the G2 checkpoint through inhibition of the Chk1 kinase function has been demonstrated to selectively sensitise p53 deficient cancer cells to genotoxic cancer therapies. 

About Sareum Holdings plc

Sareum Holdings plc is a structure-based drug discovery business headquartered in Cambridge, UK. The Company was formed in August 2003 to discover new drugs for the treatment of cancer.  Sareum’s unique approach aims to halve the time it takes to discover new drug candidates.

A structure-based approach to drug discovery relies on knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of the proteins that cause disease.  Once the structure is known, potential drugs are designed to ‘lock-in’ to the protein with the aim of reversing or arresting a disease’s progression.  Knowledge of the structure of the potential drugs and how they ‘lock-in’ to their target protein assists greatly in the development of high-quality drug candidates.  Determining structure is a complex task and requires leading-edge equipment and experienced staff.  Sareum’s approach to structure determination utilises its proprietary protein expression platform in order to produce multiple recombinant proteins that accelerate structure determination using x-ray crystallography.

Once the structure is determined, the Company’s innovative fragment screening platform is used to identify novel chemical templates designed to interact with the target protein.  Sareum then uses its high-throughput medicinal chemistry platform to rapidly optimise these molecules and develop the most promising into potential drug candidates.

Sareum aims to successfully deliver drug candidates for licensing to larger pharmaceutical companies at the pre-clinical or early clinical trials stage.  This is funded by provision of its specialist drug discovery capabilities to partners in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

Sareum joined the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in October 2004 and trades under the symbol SAR.  For further information, please visit www.sareum.co.uk

  31 March 2008

SAREUM HOLDINGS PLC

(“Sareum” or the “Company”)

Extension of Collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development, Division of Janssen Pharmaceutica N.V.

Sareum Holdings plc (AIM: SAR), the specialist structure-based drug discovery business, is pleased to announce that Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development, Division of Janssen Pharmaceutica N.V., (J&JPRD) has chosen to extend its collaborative agreement with Sareum for another six months, with an option for further extension.

Under the terms of the agreement, Sareum will apply its skills in high throughput protein structure determination to provide insight and expertise in developing new and improved therapeutics to help patients suffering from diseases of the central nervous system. In return, Sareum will receive research fees and success-dependent milestone payments.  Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Commenting on the agreement, Sareum’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Tim Mitchell, said: “We are very pleased to have supported J&JPRD’s programs over the last 12 months, and look forward to continuing this important relationship. The successful delivery on relationships with leading companies is a key component of our business strategy. ”

For further information:

Notes for editors:

About Sareum Holdings plc

Sareum Holdings plc is a structure-based drug discovery business headquartered in Cambridge, UK. The Company was formed in August 2003 to discover new drugs for the treatment of cancer.  Sareum’s unique approach aims to halve the time it takes to discover new drug candidates.

A structure-based approach to drug discovery relies on knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of the proteins that cause disease.  Once the structure is known, potential drugs are designed to ‘lock-in’ to the protein with the aim of reversing or arresting a disease’s progression.  Knowledge of the structure of the potential drugs and how they ‘lock-in’ to their target protein assists greatly in the development of high-quality drug candidates.  Determining structure is a complex task and requires leading-edge equipment and experienced staff.  Sareum’s approach to structure determination utilises its proprietary protein expression platform in order to produce multiple recombinant proteins that accelerate structure determination using x-ray crystallography.

Once the structure is determined, the Company’s innovative fragment screening platform is used to identify novel chemical templates designed to interact with the target protein.  Sareum then uses its high-throughput medicinal chemistry platform to rapidly optimise these molecules and develop the most promising into potential drug candidates.

Sareum aims to successfully deliver drug candidates for licensing to larger pharmaceutical companies at the pre-clinical or early clinical trials stage.  This is funded by provision of its specialist drug discovery capabilities to partners in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.

Sareum joined the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in October 2004 and trades under the symbol SAR.  For further information, please visit www.sareum.co.uk

SAREUM HOLDINGS PLC

(“Sareum” or “the Company”)

FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2007

Sareum Holdings plc (AIM: SAR), the specialist structure-based drug discovery business, is pleased to announce its financial results for the six month period ended 31 December 2007.

Financial highlights during period 1 July to 31 December 2007:

·         Revenues of £1,096,000 (2006: £1,205,000)

·         Loss on ordinary activities (after taxation) of £674,000 (2006: £208,000)

·         Cash in bank £920,000 (2006: £767,000)

·         Placing of £1,250,000 (gross) to advance in-house cancer drug pipeline

·         No significant financial impact on adopting IFRS

Business highlights during period 1 July to 31 December 2007:

·         Strengthened in-house drug discovery pipeline with the commencement of two further oncology drug discovery programs

·         Significant increase in patent application filings

·         Additional repeat business with H. Lundbeck A/S

·         Extension of research services agreement with Genentech, Inc.

·         Mr Giorgio Reggiani and Dr Alastair Riddell appointed to the Board

Post-period end highlights:

·         Additional in-house cancer research program and associated patent filings

Dr Tim Mitchell, CEO of Sareum Holdings plc, said: “We believe shareholder value can be maximised from our in-house cancer programmes and are pleased to report a productive research period where we have significantly progressed our internal pipeline.  Sareum has managed to maintain its level of fee for service work and we continue to focus on the development and commercialisation of our internal programmes.”

The full report is available as a pdf document: Financial results for the six months ended 31/12/07

SAREUM HOLDINGS PLC

(“Sareum” or the “Company”)