KARO BIO TO FOCUS ITS OPERATIONS

KARO BIO TO FOCUS ITS OPERATIONS

Karo Bio updates its organization and reduces the staffing in order to secure an
effective and sustainable development of the prioritized projects.

Karo Bio has a pipeline of six prioritized projects. Three of these are
partnerships where the partner covers all the costs. In addition, Karo Bio runs
three proprietary projects which are intended for partnerships at a later stage.
Earlier this year, Karo Bio made a new share issue and raised 400 MSEK for the
purpose of securing the further development of its projects. The most advanced
compound, KB2115, intended for treatment of dyslipidemia, is in Phase II
clinical development. Karo Bio intends to complete the Phase II program with
additional preclinical and clinical studies and build value for a partnership
and further development to the market. In addition, Karo Bio intends to initiate
clinical development for the type 2 diabetes compound KB3305 during fall of this
year. 

To secure an effective and sustainable development of the prioritized  projects,
Karo Bio has updated its organization. The R&D organization will be led by Dr
Anneli Hällgren, Vice President Preclinical Development, Dr Carl-Magnus
Andersson, Vice President Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Dr Jens
Kristensen, Vice President Medical Sciences. In association with the
organizational changes, Karo Bio is reducing its staff by 14 people. The
down-sizing affects both administrative support and R&D operations. On an annual
basis, the cost base will be reduced by approx. 20 MSEK. 

“With this organization and staffing, we preserve our ability to develop new
medicines, albeit with less resources. We will focus on the programs where we
have the best chance to deliver visible progress. Naturally, we regret that some
of our loyal staff have to leave the company in connection with this process”,
says Per Olof Wallström, President of Karo Bio.



For further information, please contact:

Per Olof Wallström, President & Chief Executive Officer 
Telephone: +46 8 608 60 20

Per Otteskog, Senior Vice President 
Telephone: +46 8 608 60 18







Facts about Karo Bio 
Karo Bio is a drug discovery and development company specializing in nuclear
receptors for the development of novel pharmaceuticals with focus on metabolic
diseases. 

The company has expanded from being a drug discovery company by adding in-house
preclinical and clinical development resources and competence for development of
drugs to treat metabolic diseases. The company has a strong project portfolio
with innovative molecules that primarily targets diseases such as diabetes,
atherosclerosis and dyslipidemia. In all of these areas there are significant
market opportunities and a growing need for new pharmaceuticals with new
mechanisms of action. 

In addition to the proprietary projects Karo Bio has two strategic
collaborations with international pharmaceutical companies and one biotech
collaboration for development of innovative therapies for the treatment of
common diseases.

Karo Bio is listed on the OMX Nordic Exchange Stockholm AB since 1998 (Reuters:
KARO.ST).

This press release is also available online at: www.karobio.se and
www.newsroom.cision.com