Dr. Victor R. Ambros, Discoverer of microRNA, Joins RXi Pharmaceuticals' Scientific...

Dr. Victor R. Ambros, Discoverer of microRNA, Joins RXi Pharmaceuticals' Scientific Advisory Board

WORCESTER, Mass.--(Business Wire)--
RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation (RXi) (Nasdaq: RXII), today
announced that Victor Ambros, Ph.D., Professor of Molecular Medicine
at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, has been appointed
to the Company's Scientific Advisory Board, increasing the size of the
Board to seven members.

Dr. Ambros is known for his groundbreaking 1993 discovery of the
first microRNA (miRNA). MicroRNAs are natural RNA interference
compounds that are now known to regulate genes involved in a vast
array of biological processes, including human disease. Ambros'
discovery has been heralded as a fundamental discovery in physiology
and medicine.

Commenting on today's news, Dr. Tod Woolf, President and Chief
Executive Officer of RXi, noted, "It is a pleasure, both
professionally and personally, to welcome Victor to the RXi team. I
have known Victor since he served on my thesis committee at Harvard.
Coincidentally, he served as the Ph.D. thesis advisor to RXi's
founder, Dr. Craig Mello, so this appointment truly brings Victor full
circle."

Dr. Woolf continued, "We look forward to leveraging Victor's
knowledge of microRNAs and genetic pathways. Understanding the natural
RNAi (microRNA) process is fundamental to the successful development
of RNAi therapeutics and, in particular, the expanding field of
microRNA therapeutics. We believe that having the father of microRNAs
on our Scientific Advisory Board puts the Company in an even stronger
position as we pursue the development of our proprietary therapeutic
platform in the areas of neurology, inflammation, metabolic disease
and oncology."

Dr. Ambros earned his Bachelor of Science from the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT) and completed his graduate work with
Nobel Prize winner David Baltimore at MIT, studying poliovirus genome
structure and replication. He began studying the genetic pathways
controlling developmental timing in the nematode C. elegans during his
post-doctoral fellowship in Nobel Prize winner H. Robert Horvitz's lab
at MIT, and continued those studies while on the faculty of Harvard
from 1984 to 1992, at Dartmouth from 1992 to 2007, and most recently,
at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, where he was
appointed Professor of Molecular Medicine in early 2008.

It was in 1993 that Dr. Ambros and his team identified the first
microRNA, the product of lin-4, a heterochronic gene of C. elegans.
Since then, the role of microRNAs in development has been a major
focus of his research and there is now a growing body of scientific
literature which shows that microRNAs are involved in many diseases,
including cancer, diabetes and heart disease.

Among Dr. Ambros' distinguished recognitions, in April he was
awarded the 2008 Gairdner International Award, one of the most
prestigious international awards in medical research and dubbed the
"Canadian Nobel." Also in April, Dr. Ambros was one of nine
individuals to receive the Benjamin Franklin Medal in Life Sciences.
The Franklin Institute Awards are awarded for outstanding achievements
that have directly and positively impacted and enhanced the quality of
human life and deepened the understanding of the universe.

Dr. Ambros has also received the Brandeis University's Lewis S.
Rosenstiel Award and the Genetics Society of America Medal for
outstanding contributions in the past 15 years. In 2002, he was
awarded the Newcomb Cleveland Prize from the American Association for
the Advancement of Science, of which he is a member. He is the author
of numerous publications in the field of RNA and microRNA and is
frequent lecturer on microRNA and gene regulatory pathways.

About RXI Pharmaceuticals

RXi Pharmaceuticals is a discovery-stage biopharmaceutical company
pursuing the development and potential commercialization of
proprietary therapeutics based on RNA interference (RNAi) for the
treatment of human diseases. RXi Pharmaceuticals' rxRNA(TM) compounds
are distinct from the siRNA compounds used by many other companies
developing RNAi therapeutics and are believed by the Company, based on
its internal research, to be up to 100x more active than conventional
siRNA (depending on the target site), nuclease resistant and readily
manufactured. RXi Pharmaceuticals believes it is well positioned to
compete successfully in the RNAi-based therapeutics market with its
accomplished scientific advisors, including Dr. Craig Mello, recipient
of the 2006 Nobel Prize for his co-discovery of RNAi, a management
team that is experienced in developing RNAi products, and a strong
early intellectual property position. www.rxipharma.com

About the University of Massachusetts Medical School

The University of Massachusetts Medical School, one of the fastest
growing academic health centers in the country, has built a reputation
as a world-class research institution, consistently producing
noteworthy advances in clinical and basic research. The Medical School
attracts more than $179 million in research funding annually, 80
percent of which comes from federal funding sources. The work of UMMS
researcher Craig Mello, PhD, an investigator of the prestigious Howard
Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), and his colleague Andrew Fire, PhD,
then of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, toward the discovery
of RNA interference was awarded the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology or
Medicine and has spawned a new and promising field of research, the
global impact of which may prove astounding. UMMS is the academic
partner of UMass Memorial Health Care, the largest health care
provider in Central Massachusetts. For more information, visit
www.umassmed.edu.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such
statements include, but are not limited to, statements about future
expectations, plan and future development of RXi Pharmaceutical
Corporation's products and technologies. These forward-looking
statements about future expectations, plans and prospects of the
development of RXi Pharmaceutical Corporation's products and
technologies involve significant risks, uncertainties and assumptions,
including the risk that the development of our RNAi-based therapeutics
may be delayed or may not proceed as planned and we may not be able to
complete development of any RNAi-based product, the risk that the FDA
approval process may be delayed for any drugs that we develop, and the
possibility that other companies or organizations may assert patent
rights that prevent us from developing our products. Actual results
may differ materially from those RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation
contemplated by these forward-looking statements. RXi Pharmaceuticals
Corporation does not undertake to update any of these forward-looking
statements to reflect a change in its views or events or circumstances
that occur after the date of this release.

RXi Pharmaceuticals
Donna Falcetti, 508-929-3615
ir@rxipharma.com
or
Media:
Rx Communications Group
Eric Goldman, 917-322-2563
egoldman@rxir.com

Copyright Business Wire 2008