MediciNova, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company that is publicly traded on the Nasdaq Global Market and the Hercules Market of the Osaka Securities Exchange (Code Number: 4875), has made a proposal to acquire Avigen, Inc. The proposal was communicated on December 22, 2008, in a letter from Jeff Himawan, the chairman of the Board of MediciNova, to Zola Horovitz, the chairman of the Board of Avigen. The letter delivered to Dr Horovitz further refines MediciNova's expression of interest in acquiring Avigen. MediciNova has included a copy of the letter delivered to Dr Horovitz on December 22, 2008, as Exhibit 99.1 to a Current Report on Form 8-K that MediciNova filed on December 23, 2008.

MediciNova, Inc is a publicly-traded biopharmaceutical company focused on acquiring and developing novel, small-molecule therapeutics for the treatment of diseases with unmet need, with a specific focus on the US market.