TSX To Host Biotech Event In Toronto October 17, 2002 - Six Leading Quebec-Based Life Sciences And Biotech Issuers To Be Featured To Toronto Financial Community

Six of Quebec's leading biotechnology issuers will get a chance to tell their stories to analysts and brokers of Toronto's financial community at the upcoming seminar: "Focus: Life Sciences and Biotech", October 17, 2002 at the TSX Conference Centre in Toronto. "This event will help raise the profile of senior Quebec Life Sciences and Biotech issuers within the Toronto financial community," said Clare Gaudet, Senior Vice President, TSX. "This event is part of our overall commitment to provide value added service to our issuers."

The event will begin at 7:30 a.m. with a breakfast reception, followed by presentations from senior executives of Aeterna Laboratories Inc., Axcan Pharma Inc., CryoCath Technologies Inc., Labopharm Inc., Paladin Labs Inc., and Theratechnologies Inc. The presenters will outline their company's financial and business strategies, providing an opportunity for interested parties to ask questions regarding their respective companies.

Background material on each of these companies is now available on tsx.ca.

** The Canadian biotechnology industry is growing significantly, expanding four times faster than the average for other sectors, helping to create new exports, providing innovative and skilled jobs while helping Canada to remain competitive on the world stage.

At present, Canada has 358 biotechnology companies, the second-greatest number in the world behind the United States. The biotechnology industry is represented in every province, with the largest concentrations in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia, respectively. Spending in biotech research and development in 1999 was $827 million, up 19 percent from 1998 and growth in biotechnology R&D spending for all Canadian companies is expected to reach almost $1.5 billion in 2002.