Bioassay company now has full team to market its first magnetic immunoassay products

Paris December 10, 2007 - Magnisense, a developer of next generation bioassays for human and animal diagnostics, food safety and environmental protection, announces today that it has appointed Hayat El Yousfi as Manager for Marketing and Clinical Trials.

El Yousfi will use her experience in the pharmaceutical industry and marketing to develop and manage Magnisense's marketing and its clinical research. She will have special responsibility for handling relations with regulatory authorities worldwide. El Yousfi will play a pivotal role in the launch of Magnisense's first products, planned for the first half 2008.

Magnisense's key technology breakthrough is to use magnetic beads as markers. These make it possible to achieve the accuracy of laboratory testing and the ease of use of rapid point-of-care testing. The company has already brought two formats for different application areas through to proof of feasibility. These are MIAstrip(TM) a single dose point-of-care test, and MIAflo(TM), a disposable cartridge for detection of bacterial contamination. Magnisense is working to develop products internally and to offer licenses to the bigger players in the diagnostics industry.

"Hayat El Yousfi's know-how in the fields of marketing and regulatory affairs will be extremely valuable at a time when Magnisense is getting ready to put its first product on the market - a strip which can detect tetanus serology," said Luc Lenglet, CEO of Magnisense. "She is also very much involved with the bigger companies in the diagnostic industry who are interested in our MIAtek(TM) technology and may want to license our technology."

El Yousfi, 29, prior to joining Magnisense was assistant product manager in the marketing department of McNeil SAS, a Johnson & Johnson company. She has also worked for Serono's customer service department and the drug and biological product evaluation division of AFSSAPS, France's food safety body. She graduated from the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of René Descartes Paris V, with a PharmD, and has a specialized Masters from the leading business school, HEC, in International Risk Management, and a diploma in International Activities Management from the Jean Moulin University Lyon 3.

"Magnisense's marketing strategy is based on out-licensing of our technology and internal development of our own products and means we can approach customers in several different ways," said El Yousfi. "The uniqueness of Magnisense's MIAtek technology is a powerful factor in attracting and selling to our future partners in the world of diagnostics."

About Magnisense http://www.magnisense.com
Magnisense develops next-generation bioassays for human and animal diagnostics, food safety and environmental protection. These innovative immunoassays are based on magnetic bead markers, which deliver the accuracy of laboratory testing with the ease of use of rapid test methods.

Exploiting a unique feature of magnetic bead markers, Magnisense's MIAtek(TM) technology provides true quantification of a large volume sample. The magnetic signal is free of interference from environmental factors, permitting a more sensitive and reproducible detection than possible with other surface-restricted approaches.

Magnisense is developing two test formats for different application areas:

• MIAstrip(TM): Point of care testing with a single dose, producing objective, quantifiable and traceable results via a portable reader and offering markers for a number of diseases including avian flu, cardiac disease, tetanus, and bacterial, viral, parasitic or mycotic infections.
   
• MIAflo(TM): Disposable cartridges for detection of bacterial contamination in food products, e.g. Listeria and Salmonella, or in water, e.g. Legionella, with a sensitivity that brings a significant reduction in testing time.

Founded in 2003, Magnisense has raised two rounds of financing for a total of EUR 6 million from Baring Vostok Capital Partners and private investors.

For further information, please contact:

Andrew Lloyd & Associates
Andrew Lloyd / Neil Hunter
Tel: +44 1273 675100
allo@ala.com  / neil@ala.com