Elan commences ELND005 Phase 2 study in Bipolar I Disorder

Transition Therapeutics Inc. ("Transition" or the "Company") (TSX:TTH) (NASDAQ: TTHI) today announced that its licensing partner, Elan Corporation, plc ("Elan") has commenced a Phase 2, placebo-controlled, safety and efficacy study of oral ELND005 as an adjunctive maintenance treatment in patients with Bipolar I Disorder (BPD 1) to delay the time to occurrence of mood episodes.  As the first patient has been dosed in this study, Transition will receive a milestone payment of US$ 11 million from Elan.

This bipolar clinical study is expected to enroll approximately 400 patients with BPD 1.  Additional information on the study design and protocol for this study ELND005-BPD201 can be found at http://clinicaltrials.gov/

Bipolar I Disorder (BPD) is a severe form of BPD, also commonly known as manic depressive illness.  It is a psychiatric disorder characterized by excessive swings in a person's mood and energy affecting their ability to function.  BPD is a lifetime recurrent disorder with cycles of dramatic mood swings of highs and lows, often with periods of normal moods in between.  The periods of highs and lows are called episodes of mania and depression.  BPD is also associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity and suicide risk. The US and EU population of BPD patients is estimated at approximately 3.5 million.