July 19, 2000
GENOMICS COLLABORATIVE AND AMERIPATH ENTER INTO GENOMICS ALLIANCE

Cambridge, MA and Riviera Beach, FL, July 19, 2000 -- Genomics Collaborative, Inc. and AmeriPath, Inc. (Nasdaq: PATH) announced today an exclusive genomics alliance formed to further academic and industrial research into the genetic basis of common diseases.  The alliance leverages Genomics Collaborative's capabilities in large scale DNA tissue analysis and handling and AmeriPath's national network of hospitals, physicians and pathologists.

"This alliance brings together expertise in the key areas necessary to advance genomics research to the next stage," said Kent Bottles, M.D., President of the Genomics Repository of Genomics Collaborative.  "An important component of genomics research is dependent upon researchers' access to high quality DNA and tissue samples obtained with ethical informed consent from large numbers of patients on an ongoing basis.  AmeriPath represents a perfect complement to the resources of Genomics Collaborative because it provides unmatched access to large numbers of high quality normal, diseased, and cancerous tissues."

Under this five year renewable agreement, the companies intend to provide databases and research materials to researchers in industry and academic laboratories who are working to discover genes associated with prevalent diseases.  Pursuant to the alliance, AmeriPath, through its network of some 160 hospitals and over 300 pathologists who diagnose more than 2.5 million biopsies a year, will provide Genomics Collaborative with samples from normal, diseased and cancerous tissues along with blood samples and associated clinical information.  These samples will be collected following stringent patient confidentiality and informed consent procedures.  Genomics Collaborative will extract nucleic acid and cellular populations from these materials, store the tissue, extracts, and clinical information and perform various analyses. 

"With the President's recent White House announcement last week of the first sequencing of the human genome, the genomics field enters an exciting new era," said James C. New, Chairman, President, and CEO of AmeriPath.  "Scientists can now concentrate on gene function and the association of specific genes with common diseases.  This research will inevitably lead to new diagnostic tests and therapies, and we are uniquely positioned to pursue this opportunity. Genomics Collaborative has developed a state-of-the-art capability in DNA and tissue handling, nucleic acid extraction, and analysis, all tied together by proprietary information systems and bioinformatics.  The fact that Genomics Collaborative has developed its informed consent and DNA and information handling systems to the highest ethical, scientific, and professional standards is perhaps the most important consideration in our joining forces with them."  

The alliance will focus on some of the most common disease categories including heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, osteoporosis, depression, dementia, asthma, and cancer, with a special focus on breast, colon, and prostate tumors.

AmeriPath, Inc. is the nation's largest pathology group practice and laboratory company focused on providing anatomic pathology diagnostic and healthcare information services to physicians, hospitals, national clinical laboratories, and managed care organizations.  The company presently operates in 13 states and employs 300 pathologists that provide medical services through outpatient pathology laboratories, hospital inpatient laboratories, and outpatient surgery centers.

Genomics Collaborative is a genomics information company focused on the determination of gene function.  The company has developed a worldwide network of investigators and proprietary information technology for collecting, processing, storing, and analyzing DNA and tissue samples.  These samples are collected and maintained using state-of-the-art patient informed consent, confidentiality, and quality control procedures. Developed from a network of over 250 investigator sites, GCI Global RepositoryT is linked to both medical and demographic data from selected worldwide populations. For more information, please visit www.getDNA.com.