CHICAGO, January 7, 2008 - GE Healthcare Financial Services has served as agent for a $15 million loan facility with Peplin - a public company focused on the development and commercialisation of innovative medical dermatology products. The facility will be used to augment Peplin's existing capital for ongoing product development and other support activities.

Peplin's lead topical program (PEP005 Topical) treats actinic keratosis (AK), and basal cell carcinoma (BCC), the most common form of skin cancer. Peplin's unique products offer a very short course of therapy and minor side effects.

"Through our partnership with Peplin, GE Healthcare Financial Services was able to translate its strong global capabilities into tailored solutions that will advance Peplin's business strategy in the United States, Australia and Ireland," said Anthony Storino, Senior Managing Director, GE Healthcare Financial Services' life science finance group.

For almost two decades, the life science finance team of GE Healthcare Financial Services has worked with more than 500 companies throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. With a dedicated focus on assisting life science companies large and small, from the first venture round to post-IPO, the team has provided over $2.5 billion in financing to the market.

AK is generally considered the most common pre-cancerous skin condition. AK usually appears as small, rough, scaly areas on the face, lips, ears, back of hands, forearms, scalp or neck. If left untreated, AK lesions may progress to a form of skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma, or SCC. The Lewin Group, Inc., estimates that the total direct costs for AK in the United States was $1.2 billion in 2004, and in 2002 there were approximately 8.2 million office visits for the treatment of AK with a cost to the U.S. healthcare system of approximately $1.2 billion. The Lewin Group also estimated that there were 58 million people in the United States living with AK in 2004. According to a May 2006 issue of The Journal of Family Practice, in northern hemisphere populations, 11% to 25% of adults have at least one AK lesion, compared with 40% to 60% of adults in Australia, which has the highest prevalence of AK worldwide.

Peplin is a development stage specialty pharmaceutical company focused on advancing and commercializing innovative medical dermatology products. Peplin is currently developing PEP005, which is the first in a new class of compounds and which is derived from the sap of Euphorbia peplus, or E. peplus, a rapidly growing, readily-available plant commonly referred to as petty spurge or radium weed. E. peplus has a long history of traditional use for a variety of conditions, including the topical self-treatment of various skin disorders, including skin cancer and pre-cancerous skin lesions. Peplin's lead product candidate is a patient-applied topical gel containing PEP005, a compound the use of which Peplin has patented for the treatment of actinic keratosis, or AK. This product candidate is currently in Phase II clinical trials and is referred to as PEP005 Topical for AK.

GE Healthcare Financial Services is a provider of capital, financial solutions, and related services for the global healthcare market. With over $16 billion of capital committed to the healthcare industry, GE Healthcare Financial Services offers a full range of capabilities from equipment financing and real estate financing to working capital lending, vendor programs, and practice acquisition financing. With its knowledge of all aspects of healthcare from hospitals and long-term care facilities to physicians' practices and life sciences, GE Healthcare Financial Services works with customers to create tailored financial solutions that help them improve their productivity and profitability. For more information, visit www.gehealthcarefinance.com.

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as defined under U.S. federal securities laws, including, but not limited to, the expected timing for Peplin's release of the clinical results from the trial referenced herein. These forward-looking statements can be identified through the use of words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "may," "will," and variations of these words or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on management's current, preliminary expectations and actual results could differ materially as a result of various risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, delays in the completion of clinical trials resulting from ambiguous or negative interim results, unforeseen safety issues, failure to conduct the clinical trials in accordance with regulatory requirements or clinical protocols, suspension or termination of a clinical trial by the FDA or other regulatory authorities, lack of adequate funding to continue a clinical trial and other important factors disclosed from time to time in Peplin's disclosures to the ASX. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they were made. No undue reliance should be placed on any forward-looking statements. Such information is subject to change, and we undertake no obligation to update such statements.

Media Contacts

Michael Aldridge
Chief Executive Officer
+1-510 653 9700
michael.aldridge@peplin.com

Deia Campanelli
GE Healthcare Financial Services
312-441-6169
deia.campanelli@ge.com