EOM Pharmaceuticals Appoints Drug Development Veteran Frank L. Douglas, Ph.D., M.D., Scientific Advisor

MONTVALE, N.J., July 22, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- EOM Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately held, clinical-stage company, today announced the appointment of Frank L. Douglas, Ph.D., M.D., to Scientific Advisor. Dr. Douglas will be responsible for guiding the company's clinical and scientific strategies for EOM lead candidate EOM613, as well as forming and chairing the EOM Scientific Advisory Board (SAB), which will include identifying other leading experts in the field of immunology and drug development. EOM613, is an investigational, novel peptide-nucleic acid solution immunomodulator believed to have both anti- and pro-inflammatory broad-spectrum cytokine effects.

Dr. Douglas is an accomplished industry veteran with more than three decades of experience in healthcare, pharmaceuticals, and entrepreneurship. Dr. Douglas has held leadership roles in both large and small biopharmaceutical companies, including serving as a member of the Board of Management and EVP responsible for Research, Development and Regulatory Affairs for Aventis SA, now Sanofi SA. He has led teams responsible for the development and marketing approval of many drugs across multiple therapeutic areas, including billion-dollar brands Allegra^®, Lantus^®, and Taxotere^®.

"We are pleased to welcome Dr. Douglas to the EOM team," said Irach B. Taraporewala, Ph.D., EOM Chief Executive Officer and Director. "His extensive proven experience and leadership in the pharmaceutical industry will serve as a significant strategic resource for EOM as we continue to focus on the development of EOM613 as a potential treatment for the most severe effects of COVID-19 as well as for cachexia."

In addition to his drug development leadership roles, Dr. Douglas has held several academic positions. He was Professor of the Practice in several departments, including the MIT Sloan School of Management, the Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology Program, and the MIT Department of Biomedical Engineering. He also was the founder and first executive director of the MIT Center for Biomedical Innovation, which addresses challenges in the global biomedical industry through collaborative research among industry, academia, and government.

Dr. Douglas is the recipient of numerous prestigious awards, including the Weill Cornell Medical College Alumni Special Achievement Award in 2016 and the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE) Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002. He also is a champion of diversity and inclusion and is a leading voice in the pharmaceutical industry to ensure clinical trials are representative of all relevant patients.

"I am excited to be joining EOM Pharmaceuticals at such a critical time in the planning for development of EOM613, which showed promise in early clinical studies in AIDS cachexia and rheumatoid arthritis, and I believe EOM613 has the potential to change the way we think about how immunomodulators impact the body during a cytokine storm," said Dr. Douglas. "I am looking forward to contributing to the clinical development of EOM613."

For more information, please visit www.eompharma.com.

About EOM613
EOM's lead asset, EOM613*, is an investigational, novel peptide-nucleic acid solution immunomodulator believed to have both anti- and pro-inflammatory broad-spectrum cytokine effects. In human cell culture studies, EOM613 demonstrated a unique "dynamic dual action" by suppressing or stimulating monocytes and macrophages depending on the activation state and environment of those key immune cells.^[1],[2],[3] It is hypothesized that this dynamic dual-action may overcome a limitation of many approved immunomodulators that only reduce the inflammatory state, without achieving immune system balance. EOM613 has a de-risked development program supported by promising early-clinical-stage safety and efficacy data across multiple therapeutic applications associated with hyperimmune responses, including cachexia associated with HIV/AIDS or cancer,^[4],[5] and rheumatoid arthritis.^[6]

About EOM Pharmaceuticals
EOM Pharmaceuticals is a privately held, clinical-stage company focused on developing novel drugs with the potential to transform therapeutic paradigms and improve quality of life in patients suffering from debilitating and sometimes deadly diseases. The Company was founded with a specific vision to pursue innovative and accessible approaches to rescue, repair, and restore health of patients with urgent and unmet medical needs.

*EOM613 has had other names, including Product R, OHR118, AVR118, and OHR/AVR118.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements as such term is understood in the federal securities laws, including, among others, statements regarding the potential to develop a COVID-19 therapy. Actual results may differ materially from those set forth in this press release due to the risks and uncertainties inherent in drug research and development. Any forward-looking statements in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release, and EOM Pharmaceuticals, Inc. undertakes no obligation to update or revise the statements in the future, even if new information becomes available.

References

¹ Hirschman SZ. Activation of human monocytes/macrophages by OHR/AVR118 promotes both pro- and anti-inflammatory phenotypes. Adv Biosci Biotch. 2014; 5:161-8.
² Lazzarino DA, de Diego M, Hirschman SZ, Zhang KY, Shaikh S, Musi E, Liaw L, Alexander RJ. IL-8 and MCP-1 secretion is enhanced by the peptide-nucleic acid immunomodulator, Product R, in U937 cells and primary human monocytes. Cytokine. 2001 May 21;14(4):234-9. doi: 10.1006/cyto.2001.0867. PMID: 11448124.
³ Lazzarino DA, Diego M, Musi E, Hirschman SZ, Alexander RJ. CXCR4 and CCR5 expression by H9 T-cells is downregulated by a peptide-nucleic acid immunomodulator. Immunol Lett. 2000;74(3):189-195. doi:10.1016/s0165-2478(00)00258-3
⁴ Levett PN, Hirschman SZ, Roach TC, Broome H, Alexander RJ, Fraser HS. Randomized, placebo-controlled trial of product R, a peptide-nucleic acid immunomodulator, in the treatment of adults infected with HIV. HIV Clin Trials. 2002 Jul-Aug;3(4):272-8. doi: 10.1310/N34A-653T-ABF5-8Q1R. PMID: 12187500.
⁵ Chasen M, Bhargava R, Hirschman SZ, Taraporewala IB. A Phase II study of OHR/AVR118 in anorexia-cachexia. Poster presentation at: the 7th Cachexia conference, Kobe/Osaka, Japan, December 9--11, 2013
⁶ Data on file, EOM Pharmaceuticals.

SOURCE EOM Pharmaceuticals, Inc.