EPO Orders for Over $1.3 Million in the International Markets Received

News

Dragon Pharmaceuticals is pleased to announce a number of significant developments in its international marketing of Erythropoietin (“EPO”) since its last international marketing update on October 6, 2000.

Itaca Laboratories, Ltd., of Brazil, a licensee and distributor of the Company’s EPO has filed all requisite documents with Brazilian health authorities for the registration of EPO. Itaca subsequently placed an order for $1.3 million of EPO.

Pursuant to the license and distribution agreement signed in the fall of 2000, Duopharma (M) SDN BHD of Malaysia sent a team to the Company’s production facility in Nanjing, China to be trained in Quality Assurance and Quality Control procedures. These procedures will be used by Duopharma staff to complete local vialing of the Company’s bulk EPO. Duopharma subsequently placed an order for 60 million units of purified bulk EPO for their pilot production. The EPO will be used to complete a medium scale multicentric clinical trial for anemia associated with chronic renal failure in dialysis patients in February.

The Company has also made significant progress toward the signing of a license and distribution agreement with a major pharmaceutical company in Egypt. The Egyptian company has ordered 6,000 vials of EPO for use in phase three multicentric clinical trials to demonstrate efficacy in the treatment of anemia in patients with chronic renal failure. The trials will be completed at the University of Cairo and two of the major hemodialysis centers in Egypt and are scheduled for completion in June. They will include a minimum of 60 patients. The close of the clinical trials will greatly assist in achieving registration of the Company’s EPO throughout the Middle East.

About Dragon Pharmaceuticals Inc. Dragon Pharmaceuticals is an international biopharmaceutical corporation engaged in the discovery, development, and marketing of therapies for infectious diseases, cancer, and cardiovascular diseases. Using proprietary protein expression technology, Dragon has become one of the world’s lowest cost producers of EPO (Erythropoietin), and is currently in the process of applying its technology to six additional generic drugs. Dragon intends to become a leading biotechnology company by delivering generic drugs at affordable prices as well as by developing and commercializing proprietary drugs with worldwide patent potential.