Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Biotech News - Cyberkinetics' Andara(TM) Combination Product Yields Nerve Regeneration

Cyberkinetics' Andara(TM) Combination Product Yields Nerve
Regeneration and Functional Recovery in Model for Chronic Spinal
Cord Injury; Andara(TM) OFS PLUS SYSTEM Data Debuted at AANS Annual
Meeting

FOXBOROUGH, Mass.-- April 25, 2006--Cyberkinetics
Neurotechnology Systems, Inc. (OTCBB: CYKN; "Cyberkinetics") today
announced that the Company's research collaborators at Indiana
University and the Center for Paralysis Research at Purdue
University presented study results that demonstrate - for the first
time - that Cyberkinetics' Andara(TM) Oscillating Field Stimulator
(OFS) PLUS System, a combination product, induced nerve regeneration
and functional recovery in a preclinical model of chronic, or long-
term, spinal cord injury. These new findings build on the previously
demonstrated ability of Cyberkinetics' Andara(TM) OFS Device, used
alone, to restore sensation and some function in a Phase Ia clinical
trial of ten participants who received the device within 18 days of
their injuries.

In his presentation yesterday at the Annual Meeting of the American
Association of Neurological Surgeons in San Francisco, California,
Scott Shapiro, M.D., explained that these promising results were
achieved in a preclinical study that examined use of the Andara(TM)
OFS Device in combination with local delivery of a naturally
occurring small molecule called inosine (together, the "Andara(TM)
OFS PLUS System"). This system is the subject of a patent filing to
which Cyberkinetics holds an exclusive, worldwide license. Dr.
Shapiro is the Principal Investigator for the ongoing Phase Ib
clinical trial of the Andara(TM) OFS Device and the Robert L.
Campbell Professor of Neurosurgery at the Indiana University School
of Medicine. Richard Borgens, Ph.D., inventor of Cyberkinetics'
Andara(TM) OFS Device technology, founder of Purdue's Center for
Paralysis Research, and the Mari Hulman George Professor of Applied
Neurology in the School of Veterinary Medicine at Purdue, and Scott
Purvines, M.D., a neurosurgeon affiliated with The Brain and Spine
Center at St. Luke's Hospital in Chesterfield, Missouri, and former
intern at the Indiana University School of Medicine, were co-authors
on the study.

"The need for effective treatments for spinal cord injury is urgent
and we are currently studying the Andara(TM) OFS Device with the
goal of making a promising treatment for acute spinal cord injuries
available to surgeons as soon as possible," stated Dr. Shapiro. "The
findings reported today suggest that the Andara OFS PLUS System may
eventually make it possible to also restore function in the large
number of chronically injured patients who suffered injuries in the
past."

"The Andara(TM) OFS Device is currently under FDA review as a
Humanitarian Device for use in patients with acute spinal cord
injuries and that indication represents a promising near-term
revenue opportunity. We believe that the exciting preclinical
results reported today provide the basis for expanding the Andara
(TM) OFS market potential by using it as a delivery vehicle, not
only for inosine, but for other neural repair factors as well," said
Timothy R. Surgenor, President and Chief Executive Officer at
Cyberkinetics. "We are also actively exploring how to move beyond
the treatment of spinal cord injuries to address the other potential
neurostimulator markets for the Andara(TM) OFS Device such as repair
of peripheral nerve injuries, strokes and traumatic brain injuries."

"The results reported today are a significant step in our efforts to
develop novel biological approaches to the medical treatment of
paralyzed people. While many emerging treatments for spinal cord
injury, such as stem cells, are still in early stages of
development, the Andara(TM) OFS platform could potentially bring
benefit to paralyzed people sooner. We believe that there is great
promise in combining OFS with a variety of neurotrophic factors, and
we look forward to further investigating this approach," said
Richard Borgens, Ph.D., inventor of the Andara(TM) OFS Device
technology platform and co-investigator for the study.

About the Study

Researchers used an animal model of chronic spinal cord injury (SCI)
to examine the usefulness of applying the Andara(TM) OFS PLUS System
versus inosine alone at 91 days post injury. The results were
referenced to a sham device control group and to historical data
from using the Andara(TM) OFS Device alone. Efficacy was evaluated
by measuring the ability to restore the cutaneous trunchi muscle
reflex (CTM) and by analyzing for regenerating axons histologically
after complete spinal cord injuries. The researchers found that the
Andara(TM) OFS PLUS System and inosine groups both exhibited
recovery of the CTM reflex at 60 days post-treatment, vs. no CTM
recovery in the control group. Notably, the CTM recovery obtained in
the Andara(TM) OFS Device PLUS group occurred in all but one subject
by one month after treatment. Furthermore, the Andara(TM) OFS Device
PLUS group showed statistically superior regeneration of ascending
and descending nerve fibers across the injury site vs. inosine
(p0.03 and p0.02, respectively) and both groups regenerated more
than the controls (p0.0001 and p0.0004, respectively).

About the Andara(TM) OFS Device and Andara(TM) OFS PLUS System

The Andara(TM) Oscillating Field Stimulator technology platform is
based upon the application of oscillating, low-voltage, direct
current of electricity to the areas above and below a spinal cord
injury. The Andara(TM) OFS Device stimulates the neural fibers
surrounding the spinal cord to grow across the injury in order to
restore sensory and motor function. Only about the size of a
lipstick tube, the device is implanted and the electrical leads are
attached onto the bone above and below the area of injury. The Andara
(TM) OFS PLUS System includes a drug pump which delivers inosine to
the area of injury. The Andara(TM) OFS Device is designed to treat
acute injuries and the Andara(TM) OFS PLUS System, which is designed
to be used with a number of neurotrophic factors, is being developed
for long-term (chronic) injuries. The proprietary therapeutic
devices are both designed to stimulate repair of central nervous
system tissue and to restore sensation and motor function.

The Andara(TM) OFS Device has already been demonstrated in Phase Ia
clinical trials to regenerate neural fibers and improve or restore
tactile sensation and movement in those with quadriplegia and
tetraplegia due to spinal cord injury when the device is implanted
within 18 days following injury. Cyberkinetics is seeking to obtain
Humanitarian Use Device (HUD) Designation from the FDA to support
the filing of a Humanitarian Device Exemption (HDE) in mid 2006. If
approved, Cyberkinetics could begin marketing the Andara OFS Device
on a limited basis as early as 2007.

About Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems, Inc.

Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems, Inc., a leader in the
neurotechnology industry, is developing neural stimulation, sensing
and processing technology to improve the lives of those with severe
paralysis resulting from spinal cord injuries, neurological
disorders and other conditions of the nervous system. Cyberkinetics'
product development pipeline includes: the FDA cleared-to-market
NeuroPort(TM) System, a neural monitor designed for acute inpatient
applications and labeled for temporary (less than 30 days) recording
and monitoring of brain electrical activity; the Andara(TM)
Oscillating Field Stimulator (OFS) Device, an investigational device
designed to stimulate regeneration of the spinal cord; and the
BrainGate(TM) System, an investigational device designed to provide
communication and control of a computer, assistive devices, and,
ultimately, limb movement.

Additional Information about Cyberkinetics is available at
Cyberkinetics website at www.cyberkineticsinc.com.

A photo of the Andara(TM) OFS Device, a fact sheet about the Andara
(TM) OFS technology and a copy of the abstract for Dr. Shapiro's
talk, Inosine Versus Oscillating Field Stimulation Plus Inosine in
Treating Experimental Chronic Spinal Cord Injury, are available
via "Media Room" at http://www.cyberkineticsinc.com. An animation
about the Andara(TM) OFS Device is available on the homepage of
Cyberkinetics' website at www.cyberkineticsinc.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements, including
statements about Cyberkinetics' product development plans and
progress. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor
provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995,
and can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such
as "may," "will," "believe," "expect," "anticipate" or other
comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements involve risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those projected in forward-looking statements and reported
results shall not be considered an indication of our future
performance. Factors that might cause or contribute to such
differences include our limited operating history; our lack of
profits from operations; our ability to successfully develop and
commercialize our proposed products; a lengthy approval process and
the uncertainty of FDA and other governmental regulatory
requirements; clinical trials may fail to demonstrate the safety and
effectiveness of our products; the degree and nature of our
competition; our ability to employ and retain qualified employees;
compliance with recent legislation regarding corporate governance,
including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002; as well as those risks
more fully discussed in our public filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission, all of which are difficult to predict and some
of which are beyond our control.

Contacts
Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems, Inc.:
Elizabeth A. Razee, 508-549-9981, Ext. 109
or
MacDougall Biomedical Communications
Kari Watson, 508-647-0209
Media Relations
kwatson@macbiocom.com
or
The Investor Relations Group:
Jordan Silverstein, 212-825-3210
Investor Relations

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