Veritas In Silico Begins RNase-Recruiting Small Molecule Screening forRIBOTAC design and synthesis

Tokyo, Japan, October 4, 2022 –Veritas In Silico Inc., developing mRNA-targeted small

molecules, announced today that it has entered into the agreement with Axcelead Drug
Discovery Partners, Inc. to establish a screening system of ribonuclease-recruiting small

molecules, with the aim of expanding its business to the drug discovery of RIBOTAC, aribonuclease-targeting chimera in which a ribonuclease-recruiting small molecule iscombined with an RNA-binding small molecule.

In response to the growing interest in small molecule drug discovery targeting mRNA,

Veritas In Silico provides platform technology, "ibVIS," composed of a series of drug

discovery technologies necessary for small molecules targeting mRNA, ranging from thediscovery of compounds that bind to target mRNAs using its proprietary RNA structural
analysis and high-throughput screening (HTS) technologies such as MobyDick, an RNA
structural analysis technology, and the quantitative fluorescence resonance energy

transfer (qFRET) method, to the discovery of drug candidate compounds through thestructural optimization process.

Veritas In Silico is already collaborating with several pharmaceutical companies on small
molecule drug discovery utilizing "ibVIS" and has identified several mRNA-binding

compounds that show mRNA knockdown activity at the cellular level.

Attempts have begun to design and synthesize "RIBOTACs” that specifically bind to andefficiently cleave the target mRNAs, in addition to the conventional drug discovery

approach in which the knockdown effect of mRNA-binding compounds is enhanced
through structure-based drug design (SBDD).

Under the terms of the agreement, Axcelead DDP will establish a screening systemutilizing its own compound library to obtain a set of compounds that recruit specific
RNases designated by Veritas In Silico.

By incorporating "RIBOTAC” technology into the "ibVIS," Veritas In Silico will enhance its

strengths to meet the wide-ranging needs and requirements of pharmaceuticalcompanies that aim to promote small molecule drug discovery targeting mRNA. Veritas

In Silico is also developing a plan of proposing the design and synthesis of "RIBOTAC" topharmaceutical companies that already have RNA-binding compounds.

About Veritas In Silico Inc.

Location: 1-11-1 Nishigotanda, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo 141-0031, Japan

Establishment: November 2016

Representative: Shingo Nakamura, Representative Director, Founder and Chief Executive
OfficerBusiness description: Veritas In Silico is a platform biotech company with headquarters

in Shinagawa, Tokyo, and laboratories in Kanagawa and Niigata, Japan, dedicated to thecreation of mRNA-targeted small molecules and antisense oligonucleotides. Since its

establishment in 2016, the company has conducted collaborative drug discovery researchwith Japanese pharmaceutical companies using its proprietary mRNA-targeted drug
discovery platform, "ibVIS," and currently corresponding projects are underway.

Through "ibVIS," Veritas In Silico provides pharmaceutical companies with a series ofinnovative platform technologies required for mRNA-targeted drug discovery, including

RNA structural analysis, quantitative screening of RNA-binding small molecules,experimental techniques for measuring binding of small molecules to target RNA
structures, and SBDD based on 3D structural analysis of RNA-small molecule complexes
and molecular orbital calculations.

For more information, please visit https://www.veritasinsilico.com/en/.

About Axcelead Drug Discovery Partners, Inc.

Location: 2-26-1, Muraoka-Higashi, Fujisawa, Kanagawa 251-0012, Japan
Establishment: July 2017

Representative: Yoshinori Ikeura, President, and Representative Director

Business description: Launched in July 2017, Axcelead DDP is Japan’s first
integrated drug discovery solutions provider, having taken over the drug
discovery capabilities of Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited. The

company provides integrated services, from the discovery of drug targets tothe optimization of small- and medium-molecule drug candidates, in which thecompany has particular expertise. Axcelead DDP also helps bridge the gap toclinical development.

For more information, please visit https://www.axcelead.com/en/.