MAP Pharmaceuticals Secures $60 Million Committed Equity Financing Facility

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Nov. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- MAP Pharmaceuticals,
Inc. (Nasdaq: MAPP) today announced that it has secured a committed equity
financing facility under which it may sell up to $60 million of its registered
common stock to Azimuth Opportunity Ltd. MAP Pharmaceuticals is not obligated
to utilize any of the $60 million facility, which has a term of 24 months.

During the term of the purchase agreement, at its sole discretion and subject
to certain conditions, MAP Pharmaceuticals may present Azimuth with draw down
notices requiring Azimuth to purchase a specified dollar amount of shares of
its common stock at pre-defined terms. Any shares sold under this facility
will be registered on MAP Pharmaceuticals' effective shelf registration
statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-157339) filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.

"MAP has been able to maintain a strong financial position despite the current
market environment, with $79 million in cash and accounts receivables as of
the end of the third quarter of 2009. Putting this long-term equity line of
credit in place now provides us with the option and flexibility to draw down
additional capital when and if we deem it prudent as we continue moving our
migraine product candidate LEVADEX toward an NDA submission and potential
commercial launch," stated Timothy S. Nelson, President and CEO of MAP
Pharmaceuticals. "LEVADEX met all four primary endpoints in a previous Phase
3 trial. We look forward to initiating our confirmatory Phase 3 trial for
LEVADEX in the first quarter of 2010 with the goal of submitting an NDA soon
after the completion of that trial. With recently announced Phase 3 data
showing efficacy in a number of patient subgroups not typically responsive to
current migraine therapies, and a six month interim review of safety data in
over 400 patients and over 7,800 headaches treated, we have further confidence
that LEVADEX has the potential to help many of the approximately 30 million
migraine sufferers in the United States, including many who do not realize
full benefit from the limited migraine therapies that are available to them
today."

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of
an offer to buy these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these
securities in any jurisdiction in which an offer, solicitation or sale would
be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws
of such jurisdiction.

About LEVADEX(TM)
LEVADEX orally inhaled migraine therapy is a novel migraine therapy in Phase 3
development. Patients administer LEVADEX themselves using the company's
proprietary TEMPO® inhaler. In the Phase 3 FREEDOM-301 trial, LEVADEX met all
four co-primary endpoints at two hours: pain relief (p<0.0001); phonophobia
free (p<0.0001); photophobia free (p<0.0001); and nausea free (p=0.02). Data
from this Phase 3 trial show the potential for LEVADEX to be effective in
treating acute migraine as well as a broad spectrum of migraine subpopulations
that are often difficult to treat with current therapies including triptans.
For example in this trial, patients with allodynia, menstrual migraine,
migraine with nausea and vomiting, severe migraine and those treating late in
their migraine cycle responded well to LEVADEX.

LEVADEX is designed to be differentiated from existing migraine treatments. It
is a novel formulation of dihydroergotamine (DHE), a drug used intravenously
in clinical settings to effectively and safely treat migraines. Based on
clinical results, the company believes that LEVADEX has the potential to
provide both fast onset of action, sustained pain relief and other migraine
symptom relief in an easy-to-use and non-invasive at-home therapy.

LEVADEX is designed to incorporate the multiple beneficial mechanisms of
action that allow DHE to block initiation of migraine, limit pain, reduce
inflammation and stop a migraine at any point in the migraine cycle. Based on
research to date, including the efficacy portion of the FREEDOM-301 trial, the
company believes the unique pharmacokinetic profile of LEVADEX has the
potential to effectively treat migraines, while minimizing the side effects
commonly seen with DHE and other currently available medicines.

About MAP Pharmaceuticals

MAP Pharmaceuticals is dedicated to developing and commercializing new
therapies for patients suffering from conditions that are not adequately
treated by currently available medicines. The company is developing LEVADEX
orally inhaled therapy for the potential treatment of migraine and has
reported positive results from the efficacy portion of the first Phase 3 trial
of LEVADEX. In addition, MAP Pharmaceuticals generates new pipeline
opportunities by applying its proprietary drug particle and inhalation
technologies to enhance the therapeutic benefits of proven drugs, while
minimizing risk by capitalizing on their known safety, efficacy and
commercialization history.

Additional information about MAP Pharmaceuticals can be found at
http://www.mappharma.com.

LEVADEX and TEMPO are trademarks of MAP Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Forward-Looking Statements

In addition to statements of historical facts or statements of current
conditions, this press release contains forward-looking statements, including
with respect to MAP Pharmaceuticals' LEVADEX product candidate and MAP
Pharmaceuticals' capital needs going forward. Actual results may differ
materially from current expectations based on risks and uncertainties
affecting the company's business, including, without limitation, risks and
uncertainties relating to the following: risks related to the failure to
achieve favorable clinical outcomes and to have the company's LEVADEX product
candidate approved for commercial use and risks that available financial
resources may not be sufficient to meet the company's needs and product
development plans. The reader is cautioned not to unduly rely on the
forward-looking statements contained in this press release. MAP
Pharmaceuticals expressly disclaims any intent or obligation to update these
forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Additional information
on potential factors that could affect MAP Pharmaceuticals' results and other
risks and uncertainties are detailed in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended December 31, 2008, as amended, and its Quarterly Report on Form
10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2009 and available at
http://edgar.sec.gov.

Contact:
Christopher Y. Chai
Chief Financial Officer
MAP Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
650-386-3107

Nicole Foderaro
Invigorate Communications
415-946-1058
nfoderaro@invigoratepr.com

SOURCE MAP Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Christopher Y. Chai, Chief Financial Officer of MAP Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,
+1-650-386-3107; or Nicole Foderaro of Invigorate Communications,
+1-415-946-1058, nfoderaro@invigoratepr.com, for MAP Pharmaceuticals, Inc.