Thursday, October 17, 2002

COMPANY PRESS RELEASE

Transgenomic Signs Collaboration Agreement with Lay Advocacy Group PXE International

Goal is assay for mutations in gene linked to the disease Pseudoxanthoma Elasticum (PXE)

OMAHA, Neb., and WASHINGTON, D.C., October 17 / -- Transgenomic Inc. (Nasdaq: TBIO) and non-profit organization PXE International today announced that they have entered into a collaboration to develop a diagnostic test for the genetic condition, pseudoxanthoma elasticum, commonly known as PXE. The intent is to develop a test based on Transgenomic's WAVE® System and make it available to laboratories around the world.

PXE, which affects an estimated one in twenty-five thousand to fifty thousand people, can affect the skin, eyes, cardiovascular system and/or gastrointestinal system, with significant symptomatic variability among affected individuals. Research conducted at the University of Hawaii in collaboration with PXE International has identified a gene - the ABCC6/MRP6 gene - that is linked to the disease. This gene is a member of the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter gene family, one of the largest gene families known. ABC transporters have been shown to be involved in various inherited diseases, immune system function and resistance of cancer cells to chemotherapy.

For Patrick and Sharon Terry, husband and wife co-founders of PXE International, the collaboration with Transgenomic represents the next stage of a long and ongoing journey that started in 1994 when their daughter and son were both diagnosed with PXE. The Terrys, neither of whom have a medical background, channeled their emotional energy away from worry and despair by educating themselves and then taking action to positively impact the lives of those affected with the disease. They collected and consolidated extensive data on the subject, set up a tissue bank and registry of patients, and engaged in fundraising to support new research. These activities have enabled them to engage the research community to stimulate new research and to help ensure that laboratory findings ultimately translate to better diagnosis and treatment of PXE and related conditions.

In pursuing their goal, PXE International has stayed attuned to the need to strike a balance between profit motives and reasonably priced accessibility to diagnostics and treatment, the essential element that aligns patient advocacy groups with industry in pursuit of win-win situations. Their approach caught the eye of Francis Collins, director of the National Human Genome Research Institute at the National Institutes of Health, who commented, "By establishing this unique collaboration, Sharon and Pat Terry are once again showing how creative and dedicated consumer groups can empower research on rare diseases and speed the process of identifying causes and cures of genetic disorders." Today, in addition to their involvement with PXE International, the Terrys are involved in multiple organizations including the Genetic Alliance that help to empower the consumer as a full partner in the use of genetic research to improve diagnosis and treatment of disease.

In explaining why PXE decided to partner with Transgenomic, Patrick Terry said, "Transgenomic's technology is a key component in the linkage of value that we are assembling in our global enterprise. The WAVE assay platform is simply unrivaled in specificity, accuracy and high throughput scanning capacity for genomic analysis of disease. In addition, Transgenomic's bioinformatics portal, MutationDiscovery.com™, is the collaborative management system we were looking for. It allows us to expand scientific knowledge transfer, capacity building and services to a world community. Transgenomic is integrally involved in the beginning of our success to deliver a win-win result." To that, Sharon Terry added, "We are excited with the prospect that progress in diagnosing PXE provides hope in the battle against other rare diseases; hope that today's affected individuals will enjoy a quality of life better than those that went before them."

Nancy Taylor, vice president of Global Marketing and Alliance Development with Transgenomic, sees this collaboration as just the start. According to Taylor, "The direct simplicity of our WAVE technology is ideal for the design of new tests for inherited diseases, particularly those characterized by a variety of potential mutation sites dispersed across large or complex genes. Since the WAVE System detects any mutation within a particular DNA fragment, there is no need to design and optimize a specific probe- or primer-based assay for each individual mutation." She concluded, "This also simplifies the ongoing incorporation of newly-discovered mutations into a genetic test and provides the ability to optimize the disease detection rate at a fraction of the cost of other approaches."

About PXE International

Founded in 1995 and based in Washington, D.C., PXE International is a lay advocacy group for the genetic condition pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE). This dynamic non-profit organization fosters ethical research and policy as well as supports members and the public. It initiates, coordinates and funds research and provides worldwide patient support. In seven years, PXE International has established and directs a 19-research lab consortium, more than 52 offices worldwide, a blood and tissue bank, a database of thousands of affected individuals, and provides many important services for affected individuals.

For more information about PXE International, go to their web site at www.pxe.org.

About Transgenomic

Transgenomic is headquartered in Omaha, Neb., and has offices in the United States, Europe and Japan. Major manufacturing facilities are located in San Jose, Calif., Omaha, Neb., Cramlington, Newcastle, U.K., and Glasgow, Scotland, U.K. The company provides innovative research tools to the genomics segment of the life sciences industry. These tools enable researchers to discover and understand variation in the human genetic code, or genome, in order to accelerate and improve drug development and diagnostics.

For more information about Transgenomic, go to their web site at www.transgenomic.com.

Forward Looking Statement

This press release may contain forward-looking statements that reflect management's current views and estimates of future economic circumstances, industry conditions, company performance and financial results, including the ability to develop a diagnostic assay for the disease PXE. Such statements are subject to certain factors, risks and uncertainties described from time to time in Transgenomic, Inc.'s reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any change in such factors, risks and uncertainties may cause the actual results, events and performance to differ materially from those referred to in such statements. Accordingly, the company claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 with respect to all statements contained in this press release.

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