BIOTIME BEGINS EUROPEAN HEXTEND CLINICAL TRIALS

BERKELEY, CA July 17, 1997 -- BioTime, Inc. (BTIM - NASDAQ) announced that it has begun clinical trials of Hextend, its proprietary blood plasma volume expander, using human volunteers at Middlesex Hospital in London, England. The study is expected to be completed this quarter. The results will be used in the design of multinational trials aimed at expanding indications for the use of Hextend and obtaining regulatory approval in Europe.

Hextend is currently in Phase III clinical trials in the United States, and is being used in these trials to replace blood volume during surgery in which substantial amounts of blood are lost. These double-blinded, randomized trials, expected to include 120 patients, are nearly three-quarters complete. Quantities of test solution ranging from 0.5 to 5 liters per patient have been used, and no serious related adverse events have been reported.

"One significant aspect of the current Phase III trials is that they were designed to exclude the use of albumin," said Dr. Paul Segall, BioTime President and CEO. "Recent shortages of albumin, plagued by contamination problems, have caused price increases and concern over its scarcity at hospital pharmacies."

BioTime, headquartered in Berkeley, California, is engaged in the research and development of synthetic blood plasma extenders and hypothermic blood substitute solutions and technology for use in surgery, emergency trauma treatment, the preservation of organs awaiting transplant, and for other biomedical applications.

Statements contained herein that are not historical facts may constitute forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed. These factors include the results of clinical trials of Hextend, BioTime's ability to obtain FDA and foreign regulatory approval to market Hextend, competition from products manufactured and sold or being developed by other companies, and the price of and demand for any BioTime products that are ultimately sold.