Leverkusen, July 3, 2014 - Bayer Health Care (Bayer) and the University of Oxford, UK, have entered into a strategic research alliance in the area of gynecological therapies. The multi-target collaboration focuses on endometriosis and uterine fibroids with the goal of discovering and developing innovative treatment options for these diseases.

"This new partnership with one of the world's leading institutions brings together the drug development expertise at Bayer with the disease and target expert knowledge at the University of Oxford," said Prof. Dr. Andreas Busch, Member of the Bayer HealthCare Executive Committee and Head of Global Drug Discovery. "The collaboration provides us with the opportunity to jointly develop novel treatment options for women suffering from these debilitating diseases."

Bayer is the world leader in the field of hormonal oral contraception and a pioneer in women's healthcare focusing on innovations in contraception and gynecological therapies. Bayer's drug discovery activities concentrate on the development of treatment options for endometriosis and uterine fibroids, which are still poorly understood diseases affecting millions of women worldwide. There is a high unmet medical need for innovative therapies for both conditions as there is no known curative drug treatment available and the current therapies reveal certain limitations.

"This collaboration draws on the particular skill sets of each partner in the development of innovative new therapies that could benefit millions of women around the world, and shows Oxford's commitment to work jointly with industry to develop novel medicines," said Professor Andrew Hamilton, Vice Chancellor of the University of Oxford.

Under the terms of the agreement both parties will contribute innovative drug targets and high quality technology infrastructures. Furthermore, Bayer and the University of Oxford will share responsibilities from basic research to early clinical trials in these two diseases. Joint research projects will be performed at the University of Oxford and at the Bayer HealthCare R&D Center in Berlin, Germany. The collaboration will be for an initial period of two years but is open for extension for up to five years. Bayer is eligible to license both targets and potential drug candidates exclusively and will then be responsible for any subsequent clinical development and commercialization. The University of Oxford will receive undisclosed milestone and royalty payments depending on the successful development and approval of potential drug candidates.

About Endometriosis
Endometriosis affects an estimated 176 million women worldwide or 10% of women of reproductive age. It is caused by the abnormal growth of tissue similar to that which lines the uterus (endometrial tissue) in locations outside the uterine cavity, where it causes ectopic lesion growth. These lesions are commonly found on the ovaries and pelvic peritoneum, and may involve other organs such as the bladder, bowel and rectum. Endometriosis is associated with painful periods, chronic pelvic pain, painful intercourse and sub-fertility.

About Uterine Fibroids
Uterine fibroids (leiomyomas) are smooth muscle tumors originating from the wall (myometrium) of the uterus. They are the most common benign tumors in women and are typically found during the middle and late reproductive years. While most fibroids are asymptomatic, 5% to 10% of premenopausal women are affected by symptoms such as heavy menstrual bleeding and pressure of the bladder and rectum.

About University of Oxford
Oxford University's Medical Sciences Division is one of the largest biomedical research centres in Europe, with over 2,500 people involved in research and more than 2,800 students. The University is rated one of the best in the world for medicine, and it is home to the UK's top-ranked medical school.
From the genetic and molecular basis of disease to the latest advances in neuroscience, Oxford is at the forefront of medical research. It has one of the largest clinical trial portfolios in the UK and great expertise in taking discoveries from the lab into the clinic. Partnerships with the local NHS Trusts enable patients to benefit from close links between medical research and healthcare delivery.
A great strength of Oxford medicine is its long-standing network of clinical research units in Asia and Africa, enabling world-leading research on the most pressing global health challenges such as malaria, TB, HIV/AIDS and flu. Oxford is also renowned for its large-scale studies which examine the role of factors such as smoking, alcohol and diet on cancer, heart disease and other conditions.

About Bayer HealthCare
The Bayer Group is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health care, agriculture and high-tech materials. Bayer HealthCare, a subgroup of Bayer AG with annual sales of EUR 18.9 billion (2013), is one of the world's leading, innovative companies in the healthcare and medical products industry and is based in Leverkusen, Germany. The company combines the global activities of the Animal Health, Consumer Care, Medical Care and Pharmaceuticals divisions. Bayer HealthCare's aim is to discover, develop, manufacture and market products that will improve human and animal health worldwide. Bayer HealthCare has a global workforce of 56,000 employees (Dec 31, 2013) and is represented in more than 100 countries. More information is available at www.healthcare.bayer.com.

Our online press service is just a click away: press.healthcare.bayer.com
Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/healthcare.bayer
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BayerHealthCare

Find more information at www.bayerpharma.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer Group or subgroup management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer's public reports which are available on the Bayer website at www.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.

distributed by