Napo Pharmaceuticals

news

Appointment of Staph Bakali as Non-Executive Director

South San Francisco, California, January 10, 2007 - Napo Pharmaceuticals, Inc., (LSE: NAPL), which focuses on the development and commercialization of proprietary pharmaceuticals for the global marketplace in collaboration with local partners, is pleased to announce today that Mustapha ("Staph") Leavenworth Bakali, aged 45, has been appointed to the Board of Napo as a Non-Executive Director with immediate effect.

Staph Bakali is the former Chief Operating Officer of ID Biomedical Corporation ("ID Biomedical"), a Canadian-based biotechnology company which focused on the development of innovative vaccine products. At ID Biomedical, Staph was responsible for the integration of Shire Biologics, which was acquired from the U.K.-based Shire Pharmaceuticals Group, and streamlining the development programmes. He subsequently played a key role in the $1.4 billion acquisition of the combined company by GSK in 2005.

Prior to working at ID Biomedical, Staph was a director and Chief Operating Officer and Chief Executive Designate of PowderJect Pharmaceuticals plc ("PowderJect") where he played an integral role in transforming the company from an R&D stage organisation into a fully integrated vaccines business, which led to the acquisition of PowderJect by Chiron Corporation for 550 million in 2003.

Between 1999 and 2001 Staph was Director of Worldwide Sales and Marketing for the Vaccines Division of Chiron Corporation and, prior to that, spent 11 years with Smithkline Beecham plc in a number of management positions.

Mr Bakali is currently a Non-Executive Director of Phoqus Group plc, Intercell AG and Osisko Exploration Ltd.

The Company confirms that there is no additional information which is required to be disclosed under Rule 9.6.13 of the Listing Rules of the UK Listing Authority.

Lisa A. Conte, CEO of Napo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. commented: "We believe Napo will benefit significantly through the addition of Staph Bakali to our board of Directors. He has a terrific background in both small and large pharma. His record in leading companies from the R&D stage to the commercial stage and beyond and his thoughtfulness about the new opportunities facing the pharmaceutical industry in the global marketplace are exactly the skill sets that will benefit Napo's business model." Commenting on this announcement, Staph Bakali, added: "I am very pleased to be joining Napo at this stage and look forward to helping it successfully achieve its commercialisation goals for crofelemer and its other pipeline opportunities. Napo is well positioned to bring proprietary drugs to all populations through its innovative global partnerships and business model."

For more information please contact:

Napo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Lisa Conte, Chief Executive Officer
+1 (650) 616-1902

Charles Thompson, Chief Financial Officer
+1 (650) 616-1903

Buchanan Communications
+ 44 (0)20 7466 5000
Tim Anderson, Mary-Jane Johnson

Nomura Code Securities Limited
+44 (0)20 7776 1204
Juliet Thompson

About Napo
Napo Pharmaceuticals Inc., focuses on the development and commercialization of proprietary pharmaceuticals for the global marketplace in collaboration with local partners. Napo was founded in November 2001, and is based in California, USA with a subsidiary in Mumbai, India. Napo's late-stage proprietary gastro-intestinal compound, crofelemer, is in various stages of clinical development for four distinct product indications, including a late-stage Phase 3 program:

• CRO-HIV for AIDS diarrhea, Phase 3
• CRO-IBS for diarrhea irritable bowel syndrome (D-IBS), Phase 2
• CRO-ID for acute infectious diarrhea (including cholera), Phase 2
• CRO-PED for pediatric diarrhea, Phase 1

The FDA has granted fast-track status to CRO-IBS and CRO-HIV. Crofelemer, a proprietary patented agent, is extracted from Croton lechleri, a medicinal plant which can be sustainably harvested from several countries in South America. Napo also plans to develop an early clinical stage product, NP-500, for the treatment of insulin resistant diseases of Type II diabetes and metabolic syndrome (Syndrome X; pre-diabetic syndrome). Napo also has a plant library of approximately 2,300 medicinal plants from tropical regions and Napo has entered its first screening relationship associated with this collection. Currently, products are based on the chemical and biological diversity derived from plants with medicinal properties, but future products may be in-licensed from other sources. Napo has partnerships with Trine Pharmaceuticals, Inc. of the United States of America; Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Limited of India; and AsiaPharm Group Ltd. of China. For more information please visit www.napopharma.com

About Crofelemer

Crofelemer, a proprietary patented agent, is extracted from Croton lechleri, a medicinal plant which can be sustainably harvested from several countries in South America. Crofelemer is in various stages of clinical development for four distinct product indications, one in Phase 3, two in Phase 2 and one in Phase 1. These products have been tested in trials involving approximately 1500 patients in double-blind placebo-controlled, mostly published trials of AIDS diarrhoea, diarrhoea-predominant IBS, and acute infectious diarrhoea. The products are generally well tolerated and have shown significant anti-diarrhoeal activities and improvement in gastrointestinal symptoms. Crofelemer produces several effects when administered orally providing for activity in several disease indications. Crofelemer's anti-secretory mechanism reduces excess fluid secreted into the gastro-intestinal tract, while its anti-inflammatory and analgesic activity may provide the rationale for its significant benefit in abdominal pain. Crofelemer acts locally in the intestines, with limited systemic exposure.