Novoheart Files Patent Application on Three-Tier Drug Screening System After Successful Collaboration Contract with Global Pharma Company

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Jan. 16, 2018) - Novoheart ("Novoheart" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE:NVH) today announced that it has filed a provisional patent application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for a three-tiered drug screening system with enhanced capability, sensitivity and accuracy for detecting pharmacological effects on heart contractility that cannot be achieved with conventional models. The application resulted from the Company's collaborative contract with a multi-national global pharma company ("Pharma"). The completion of this contract also led to a subsequent income-generating contract with the same Pharma to build a cardiac disease model using the MyHeart™ Platform. Further details on both will be announced separately.

Owing to the lack of reliable human heart models, drug development is a notoriously lengthy, expensive and inefficient process, plagued with false negative and false positive results which lead to unacceptably high failure rates of >90%. The ability to reliably detect cardiac efficacy and toxicity early on during drug development is crucial for success; yet currently available tools are inadequate in terms of their accuracy and sensitivity.

To answer the unmet demand, the Company developed its proprietary drug screening system which comprises two types of bioengineered tissue constructs from Novoheart's MyHeart™ Platform, utilized in a tiered fashion: the first stage of screening utilizes the human ventricular cardiac tissue strip (hvCTS) for identifying effects in larger numbers of drug candidates, followed by verification in the second stage using the sophisticated human ventricular cardiac organoid chamber (hvCOC, or "human heart-in-a-jar™"), an exclusive Novoheart technology whose three-dimensional architecture and best-in-class physiological readouts allow highly sensitive detection to avoid false negatives and positives. In combination with Novoheart's proprietary multi-organoid culturing and imaging platform, where the hvCOC is connected via a fluidic system to other tissue-engineered organoids such as liver, a third tier of screening will be performed to study effects of drug compounds at the systems level, all in the context of human physiology but without involving patients.

"As a result of the successful collaboration with our global pharma partner, we have been able to develop a new drug screening system capable of selecting the best candidates based on their effects on human heart contractility. The proprietary system can be adapted for healthy as well as sick hearts, for screening of both toxicity and efficacy. Notably, it enables testing to be carried out with great precision and sensitivity, without the need for patient involvement." said Kevin Costa, CSO of Novoheart.

"With the improved precision that is now accessible to those in drug development as a result of this new three-tier drug screening system, we expect to further enhance our ability to commercialize and bring tangible value to both our clients and investors," said Ronald Li, CEO of Novoheart. "We are in the process of securing additional partnerships and contracts with drug developers in order to continue to extend the reach of our technology and meet what are significant industry needs."

About Novoheart:

Novoheart is a global stem cell biotechnology company pioneering an array of next-generation human heart tissue prototypes. It is the first company in the world to have engineered miniature living human heart pumps that can revolutionize drug discovery, helping to save time and money for developing new therapeutics.

Also known as 'human heart-in-a-jar', Novoheart's bioartificial human heart constructs are created using state-of-the-art stem cell and bioengineering approaches, and are utilized by drug developers for accurate preclinical testing as to the effectiveness and safety of new drugs, maximizing the successes in drug discovery whilst minimizing costs and harm caused to patients.

The Company is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") under the symbol "NVH".

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are statements that relate to future, not past, events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", and "intend", statements that an action or event "may", "might", "could", "should", or "will" be taken or occur, or other similar expressions. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation; statements about the Company's future plans, its goals and expectations, and the potential applications of its MyHeart™ platform are forward-looking statements. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, the risks identified in the management discussion and analysis section of Novoheart Holdings Inc.'s interim and most recent annual financial statement or other reports and filings with the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable Canadian securities regulators. Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made and the respective companies undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as required by applicable securities laws. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements.