Incyte Licenses Comprehensive Microarray Patent Portfolio to Chiron Palo Alto, CA, January 11, 2001 - Incyte Genomics, Inc. (Nasdaq: INCY), the leading genomic information company, announced today it has licensed its comprehensive microarray patent portfolio including U.S. Patent Numbers 5,716,785, 5,891,636, and 5,807,522, to Emeryville, CA-based biotechnology firm Chiron Corporation for internal use only. This technology complements Chiron's functional genomics program. Financial terms were not disclosed. Incyte is the exclusive licensee to the '522 patent which was issued to Stanford University. The patent broadly covers methods for fabricating microarrays for applications such as gene expression analysis. The '522 patent describes proprietary technology used to print microarrays at densities greater than 100 polynucleotides per cm2. In its current format, this powerful technology allows for the fabrication of DNA arrays of at least 10,000 elements, each element representing a distinct gene. This key patent was based on pioneering work in the microarray field by Dari Shalon, Ph.D., of Incyte, and Patrick Brown, Ph.D., of Stanford University. Incyte was granted an exclusive license under the '785 and '636 patents by Layton Bioscience, Inc. The technology was invented by James H. Eberwine, Russell N. Van Gelder, Mark E. Von Zastrow, and Jack D. Barchas. These patents cover a fundamental non-PCR based RNA amplification technology, which enables researchers to increase RNA sample size from cellular mRNA for use in microarray-based gene expression analysis. Incyte Genomics, Inc. is the leading provider of an integrated platform of genomic technologies designed to aid in the understanding of the molecular basis of disease. Incyte develops and markets genomic databases and partnership programs, genomic data management software, microarray-based gene expression services, related reagents and services. These products, programs and services assist pharmaceutical and biotechnology researchers with all phases of drug discovery and development including gene discovery, understanding disease pathways, identifying new disease targets and the discovery and correlation of gene sequence variation to disease. For more information, visit Incyte's web site at http://www.incyte.com. Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters set forth in this press release, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially. For a discussion of factors that may cause results to differ, see Incyte's SEC reports, including its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2000. Incyte disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.