Reminder: Athersys' First Annual Investor Day On April 8, 2009 in New York City

CLEVELAND, April 7, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Athersys, Inc. (Nasdaq:ATHX) today
announced highlights for its first annual Investor Day being held at the
Intercontinental Hotel on Wednesday, April 8th, 2009 in New York City. As a
reminder, the meeting will begin promptly at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time and end at
approximately 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time. Advance registration will be available at
the company website, at www.Athersys.com, or will be available onsite at the
event beginning at 7:30 a.m.

Highlights of the program for Athersys' first annual Investor Day will include:

* Presentations by senior management including: Gil Van Bokkelen,
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, William (B.J.) Lehmann,
President and Chief Operating Officer, John Harrington, Chief
Scientific Officer, and Robert Deans, Senior Vice President of
Regenerative Medicine.

* An update of the status of the Company's key stem cell
development programs including application of MultiStem(r) toward
the treatment of multiple diseases, including two ongoing
clinical studies in acute myocardial infarction and cancer
treatment support in leukemia and lymphoma patients. A key focus
of the event will be to provide a detailed overview of the
product profile, including manufacturing, safety and efficacy
data from multiple studies.

* An update on other key drug development programs at the Company,
including the H3 antagonist program, which has potential
relevance for treating multiple conditions, including attention
or cognitive disorders, and conditions that affect wakefulness.
The Company will also review its 5HT2c agonist program for the
treatment of obesity.
Institutional investors and analysts interested in attending should contact Lisa
Wilson, Investor Relations for Athersys, either via telephone at 1-917-543-9932
or e-mail at: lwilson@insitecony.com.

A web cast replay will be available via Athersys' IR section on its web site
immediately following the event.

About Our Programs

MultiStem

Athersys is developing MultiStem as the first "off-the-shelf" stem cell therapy
product that can be manufactured on an industrial scale, which the Company
believes represents a major advance in the field of stem cell medicine.
MultiStem is isolated from healthy consenting donors and then expanded to
produce a frozen stem cell bank. Unlike other stem cells, by using cells
obtained from a single donor and expanded using proprietary processes, hundreds
of thousands or even millions of doses of MultiStem may be produced.
Importantly, MultiStem is administered without tissue matching or the need for
immune suppressive drugs and has shown the potential to deliver a therapeutic
benefit in multiple ways, such as through the dynamically regulated production
of factors that reduce inflammation, protect damaged or injured cells, and
promote tissue repair and healing.

Recently, Athersys was selected by Frost & Sullivan, a global research and
consulting firm, to receive the 2008 North American Product Innovation of the
Year Award in recognition of the best-in-class profile of MultiStem, which is in
clinical and preclinical development for multiple disease indications. Current
programs include applying MultiStem toward the treatment cardiovascular disease,
cancer treatment support, ischemic stroke and a range of other conditions
involving ischemic injury or immune system function.

"We are excited by the progress being made and the potential breadth of
MultiStem toward treating a range of diseases and conditions that represent
substantial, unmet medical needs. These represent a significant burden to the
global healthcare system. We believe this technology has the potential to make
stem cell medicine a reality for many patients," said Dr. Van Bokkelen.

In December, Athersys announced that it received authorization from the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to initiate a Phase I clinical trial
evaluating the safety of administration of MultiStem in the treatment of
ischemic stroke. This represented the third IND authorized by the FDA for
MultiStem within a year, and the trial would represent the first clinical study
in the U.S. of an off-the-shelf stem cell therapy product candidate for
treatment of ischemic stroke.

Histamine H3 Receptor Antagonist Program

In addition to its stem cell and regenerative medicine programs, Athersys is
also developing H3 antagonists to treat certain cognitive disorders and
conditions such as narcolepsy, excessive daytime sleepiness, and chronic fatigue
associated with certain diseases such as Parkinson's. The H3 receptor regulates
levels of histamine and other neuro-transmitters in certain areas of the brain
that play a direct role in regulating cognitive functions and wakefulness. The
histamine H3 receptor antagonists being developed at Athersys represent a new
class of drugs that could have an improved efficacy and safety profile relative
to existing drugs used for the treatment of various conditions affecting
attention and cognitive function, including attention deficit disorder,
schizophrenia or other indications.

5HT2c Agonist Program

In addition to its other programs, Athersys is developing potent, selective
5HT2c receptor agonists for the treatment of obesity. The 5HT2c serotonin
receptor plays an important role in the regulation of appetite, and numerous
prior studies have demonstrated that stimulation of the 5HT2c receptor causes a
significant reduction in appetite, resulting in weight loss over time. In 2008,
the Company completed three Phase I safety studies of its lead obesity
candidate, ATHX-105. However, after consultation with the FDA, the Company has
decided to suspend further development of this compound and is currently
focusing on the advancement of next generation compounds that exhibit improved
characteristics.

About Athersys, Inc.

Athersys is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development
of therapeutic product candidates designed to extend and enhance the quality of
human life. The Company is developing MultiStem, a patented, adult-derived
"off-the-shelf" stem cell product platform for multiple disease indications,
including damage caused by myocardial infarction, bone marrow
transplantation/oncology support, ischemic stroke and other indications. The
Company is also developing a portfolio of other therapeutic programs, including
orally active pharmaceutical product candidates for the treatment of metabolic
and central nervous system disorders, utilizing proprietary technologies,
including Random Activation of Gene Expression (RAGE). More information is
available at www.athersys.com.

The Athersys, Inc. logo is available at
http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=4548

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and
uncertainties. These forward-looking statements relate to, among other things,
the expected timetable for development of our product candidates, our growth
strategy, and our future financial performance, including our operations,
economic performance, financial condition, prospects, and other future events.
We have attempted to identify forward-looking statements by using such words as
"anticipates," "believes," "can," "continue," "could," "estimates," "expects,"
"intends," "may," "plans," "potential," "should," "will," or other similar
expressions. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and are
largely based on our current expectations. A number of known and unknown risks,
uncertainties, and other factors could affect the accuracy of these statements.
Some of the more significant known risks that we face are the risks and
uncertainties inherent in the process of discovering, developing, and
commercializing products that are safe and effective for use as human
therapeutics, including the uncertainty regarding market acceptance of our
product candidates and our ability to generate revenues, including MultiStem for
the treatment of a variety of indications. These risks may cause our actual
results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to differ materially
from any future results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements
expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Other important
factors to consider in evaluating our forward-looking statements include: our
ability to successfully initiate or complete clinical trials for our product
candidates; the possibility of delays in, adverse results of, and excessive
costs of the development process; changes in external market factors; changes in
our industry's overall performance; changes in our business strategy; our
ability to protect our intellectual property portfolio; our possible inability
to enter into licensing or co-development arrangements for certain product
candidates; our possible inability to execute our strategy due to changes in our
industry or the economy generally, including the current economic crisis; our
ability to obtain capital in difficult market conditions; changes in financial
stability of collaborators; changes in productivity and reliability of
suppliers; and the success of our competitors and the emergence of new
competitors. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements
contained in this press release, and we undertake no obligation to publicly
update forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.

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CONTACT: Athersys, Inc.
William (B.J.) Lehmann, J.D., President and COO
(216) 431-9900
bjlehmann@athersys.com

In-Site Communications
Investor Relations:
Lisa M. Wilson
(917) 543-9932
lwilson@insitecony.com

Lambert, Edwards & Associates
Media:
Dave Buckalew
(616) 233-0500
dbuckalew@lambert-edwards.com