Press Release

SAN FRANCISCO, April 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Nektar Therapeutics (Nasdaq: NKTR) will announce its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2011 on Wednesday, April 27, 2011, after the close of U.S.-based financial markets. Howard Robin, president and chief executive officer, will host a conference call to review the results beginning at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET)/2:00 p.m. Pacific Time (PT).

The press release and a live audio-only Webcast of the conference call can be accessed through a link that is posted on the home page and Investor Relations section of the Nektar website: http://www.nektar.com. The web broadcast of the conference call will be available for replay through Wednesday, May 25, 2011.

An audio replay will also be available shortly following the call through Wednesday, May 25, 2011 and can be accessed by dialing (888) 286-8010 (U.S.); or (617) 801-6888 (international) with a passcode of 92209339.

In the event that any non-GAAP financial measure is discussed on the conference call that is not described in the press release, or explained on the conference call, related information will be made available on the Investor Relations page at the Nektar website as soon as practical after the conclusion of the conference call.

About Nektar

Nektar Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics based on its PEGylation and advanced polymer conjugation technology platforms. Nektar has a robust R&D pipeline of potentially high-value therapeutics in oncology, pain and other areas. In the area of pain, Nektar has an exclusive worldwide license agreement with AstraZeneca for NKTR-118, an investigational drug candidate, being evaluated in Phase 3 clinical studies as a once-daily, oral tablet for the treatment of opioid-induced constipation.  The agreement also includes NKTR-119, an earlier stage development program that is a co-formulation of NKTR-118 and an opioid.  NKTR-181, the company's wholly-owned novel mu-opioid analgesic molecule, is being evaluated in Phase 1 clinical studies.  In oncology, NKTR-102, a proprietary novel topoisomerase I-inhibitor, is being evaluated in Phase 2 clinical studies for the treatment of breast, ovarian and colorectal cancers. NKTR-105, a novel anti-mitotic agent, is in a Phase 1 clinical study in cancer patients with refractory solid tumors.

Nektar's technology has enabled seven approved products in the U.S. or Europe through partnerships with leading biopharmaceutical companies, including UCB's Cimzia® for Crohn's disease and rheumatoid arthritis, Roche's PEGASYS® for hepatitis C and Amgen's Neulasta® for neutropenia.

Nektar is headquartered in San Francisco, California, with additional R&D operations in Huntsville, Alabama and Hyderabad, India. Further information about the company and its drug development programs and capabilities may be found online at http://www.nektar.com.

SOURCE Nektar Therapeutics