VASTox plc
31 May 2006

 VASTox BECOMES A PARTNER IN THE EUROPEAN NETWORK OF EXCELLENCE TO ADVANCE THE
                    TREATMENT OF RARE NEUROMUSCULAR DISEASES



             "Network of Excellence" funded by Euro10 million EU grant



Oxford, UK, 31 May 2006 - VASTox (AIM: VOX), a leading chemical genomics
company, today announces that the European Union has awarded a Euro10 million grant
to the TREAT-NMD network, of which VASTox is a member.  VASTox and a network of
leading researchers, clinicians and patient associations have joined forces to
progress the development of treatments for rare neuromuscular diseases (NMD),
such as muscular dystrophies and spinal muscular atrophy. The EU grant will fund
collaborative research and development efforts into these important therapeutic
areas.



VASTox will work closely with the other members of the TREAT-NMD network of
excellence to develop best practice in all areas of NMD research and
development, in particular, ensuring the route of a drug candidate from the
laboratory bench to an approved medicine is as efficient as possible.  VASTox
has drug development programmes in two NMD areas: Duchenne muscular dystrophy
and spinal muscular atrophy. There are currently no medicines to effectively
treat patients with either of these fatal genetic diseases.



Twenty-one organisations from 11 European countries will work together to ensure
that future treatments for NMD diseases have the best chance of success by
making the development of NMD drugs quicker and more cost-effective.  The
consortium is led by the University of Newcastle and will liaise closely with
NMD charities and patient groups across Europe.  The grant is phased over five
years and will be split between the consortium members.



Steven Lee, PhD, CEO of VASTox said: "Being a key industry partner of this
network of excellence is recognition of our expertise in the field of drug
development for neuromuscular diseases. VASTox will bring an industry focus to
ensure that new drug candidates have the very best chance of successfully
reaching patients. VASTox is committed to developing safe and effective
treatments for Duchenne muscular dystrophy and spinal muscular atrophy. "



Nick Catlin, CEO of Parent Project UK, a muscular dystrophy charity, said: "
Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a severe genetic muscle wasting disease
that has a devastating effect on both patients and the lives of everyone in
their family. The research at VASTox and new funding for the TREAT-NMD network
offers all our families real hope for the future. VASTox are at the forefront of
developing new drug treatments in the UK that we hope will help us to win the
race against time for this generation of children with DMD."



                                    - ends -



For more information please contact:


VASTox                                                 Tel: +44 (0)1235 443910

Steven Lee, PhD, Chief Executive Officer

Darren Millington, Chief Financial Officer


Parent Project UK                                      Tel: +44 (0)208 556 9955
Nick Catlin, Chief Executive Officer                   Tel: +44 (0)7920 723 490
                                                       Email: nick@ppuk.org


Citigate Dewe Rogerson                                 Tel: +44 (0)207 638 9571
David Dible / Mark Swallow / Valerie Auffray



About VASTox plc



VASTox is a chemical genomics technology company that discovers and develops
proprietary novel drugs and provides services to the pharmaceutical industry.
The company's most advanced drug development programme is focused on developing
a new treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy based on the up-regulation of
utrophin. A second drug development programme for spinal muscular atrophy is
also progressing rapidly. VASTox has three additional programmes focused on
osteoarthritis, cancer and tuberculosis that are expected to be out-licensed
prior to entering the clinic.



The company's technology platform, which uses zebrafish and fruitflies, has the
potential to dramatically decrease the time and cost of drug discovery and
development. This is because using whole organisms allows it to carry out high
volume, high content screening that delivers data which is highly predictive of
the efficacy and toxicity of potential drug compounds in humans. VASTox is
growing revenues based on marketing its unique technology platform and its
chemistry expertise.  The company listed on the AIM market of the London Stock
Exchange in October 2004.



Further information about the company is available at www.vastox.com.



About Parent Project UK



Parent Project UK Muscular Dystrophy (PPUK) is the only national charity that
exclusively funds research and campaigns for better medical care for Duchenne
and Becker muscular dystrophy. PPUK was set up by parents of boys with Duchenne
muscular dystrophy in 2001 and has since been instrumental in setting up a
consortium of researchers to develop the first clinical trial for a Gene Therapy
in the UK.  The MDEX consortium has already won #1.6m of funding from the
Department of Health following the lobbying of parents and supporters from PPUK.
  PPUK has networks of Parent Action Groups across the UK and has recently set
up a DMD Registry, www.dmdregistry.org, that will be the first national database
of all those living with DMD in the UK. PPUK will make this data available to
help to accelerate future research and clinical trials.



Further information is available at www.ppuk.org.


                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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