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Mirari Biosciences Receives Grant From The National Institutes of Health to Develop Advanced Instrumentation for MASC™ Technology

Rockville, MD - December 12, 2005 - The National Institutes of Health (NIH, Bethesda, Maryland) has awarded Mirari Biosciences, Inc. with a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant to develop specialized instrumentation for Mirari's proprietary Microwave-Accelerated Surface Chemistry™ (MASC™) technology. MASC™ technology uses mild microwaves to greatly speed testing in biomedical research and diagnostics. Faster tests promise to result in shorter drug development times and quicker answers in diagnostics procedures. MASC™ technology involves two hardware components, both of which are covered by multiple Mirari pending patents. The two components are: the instrument, which delivers mild microwaves, and disposable "chips" or "plates", which are innovative microwave-absorbing surfaces on which tests are run. Hundreds or thousands of tests can be simultaneously performed on MASC™ chips and plates. The NIH grant enables Mirari to develop custom instrumentation specifically for MASC™ technology and tests. The instrumentation will be the first of its kind and will use microwaves to both accelerate and measure the results of important biomedical tests called immunoassays. The prototype instrument is expected to substantially hasten the commercialization of MASC™ technology and the improvement of biomedical testing.