Mechelen, Belgium, August 22, 2001 -- Galapagos Genomics NV, the Belgian functional genomics company, today announced a research collaboration with Vertex Pharmaceuticals to identify the function of proteins encoded by novel genes in selected target protein families.

Under the terms of the agreement, Galapagos will provide through its PhenoSelect expression platform custom-based recombinant adenoviruses for protein targets of interest to Vertex's small molecule drug design efforts. Vertex will utilize the collection of adenoviruses provided by Galapagos for characterization of protein activity within targeted biological pathways. Financial terms of the collaboration were not disclosed.

"This collaboration demonstrates the high value of our adenoviral technology platform for functional genomics applications," said Onno van de Stolpe, CEO of Galapagos. "We are pleased to partner with a top tier biotechnology company like Vertex and contribute to the selection of drug targets for their drug discovery programs."

Galapagos Collaboration