Genome Therapeutics Adds New President and Chief Operating Officer / Appoints Dr. Richard D. Gill, Former General Manager of BTG plc's North American Operations

WALTHAM, Mass. (PROTEXT) - Genome Therapeutics Corp. (Nasdaq: GENE), a leader in the field of genomics, today announced the appointment of Richard D. Gill, Ph.D., as President and Chief Operating Officer, effective January 3, 2000. Dr. Gill succeeds Robert J. Hennessey who remains Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. ( Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991216/NETH002 ) Dr. Gill joins Genome Therapeutics following 10 years with BTG International Inc., a subsidiary of BTG plc, a global leader in the patenting, marketing and commercialization of intellectual property rights. Dr. Gill was instrumental in establishing BTG USA in 1990 and served as Senior Vice President and General Manager of BTG's North American Biosciences business headquartered in Gulph Mills, Pennsylvania. He was responsible for Human Pharmaceuticals, Agribusiness, Food, Vaccines, Veterinary Products and Diagnostics. During his tenure, BTG in- licensed technologies and products including BeneFIX(R) (Recombinant Factor IX treatment for Hemophilia B) and Campath(R) (treatment for the most common form of adult leukemia) from universities for development and re-licensed them to Genetics Institute and LeukoSite, respectively, for development. "Recognized as one of the most successful commercialization executives in the biosciences business, Dr. Gill brings a demonstrated balance of scientific and business leadership to Genome Therapeutics. His track record of acquiring technologies and commercializing products from a variety of sources, domestically and abroad is impressive," stated Robert J. Hennessey. "Dr. Gill's experience and abilities will help lead GTC to a new level as we seek to expand our revenue base and add value through acquisition and development of novel products and technologies." "Bob Hennessey and his team have built an impressive portfolio of alliance partners and created a solid commercial business in genomics," said Dr. Gill. "I look forward to developing and integrating these strengths to capitalize on the tremendous opportunities in genomics and drug discovery, both within Genome Therapeutics as well as by identification and development of assets from external sources." Prior to joining BTG, Dr. Gill held positions of increasing responsibility in science and management with Unilever plc in the United Kingdom from 1980 to 1989. Dr. Gill is a Board member of the Ben Franklin Technology Center, served as a Board member of the Pennsylvania Biotechnology Association, and acted as Co-Chair of the Host Committee for BIO '96, in Philadelphia. Hennessey added, "On behalf of all our employees and the Board, we welcome Dr. Gill to the Company, and look forward to his enthusiastic leadership in shaping the next phase of our Company's growth." Genome Therapeutics Corp. is a leader in the field of genomics - the identification and functional characterization of genes. The Company's commercial gene discovery strategy is to elucidate microbial genes as novel drug targets against many serious infectious organisms and identify and characterize human genes associated with major diseases. Together with its strategic partners, Genome Therapeutics is using genomic information to develop a new generation of pharmaceuticals. Statements in this press release that are not strictly historical are "forward looking" statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The actual results may differ from those projected in the forward looking statement due to risks and uncertainties that exist in Genome Therapeutics' operations and business environment, described more fully in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K. ots Original Text Service: Genome Therapeutics Corp. Internet: http://www.newsaktuell.de Contact: Christopher Taylor, Director of Investor Relations of Genome Therapeutics Corp., 781-398-2466, or Douglas E. MacDougall, Vice President of Feinstein Kean Healthcare, 617-577-8110 Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991216/NETH002 PRN Photo Desk, 888-776-6555 or 201-369-3467 Web site: http://www.genomecorp.com Subscribers please note that material bearing the slug "PROTEXT" is not part of CTK's news service and is not to be published under the "CTK" slug. Protext is a commercial service providing distribution of press releases from clients, who are identified in the text of Protext reports and who bear full responsibility for their contents. PROTEXT