Kinex Pharmaceuticals Appoints Dr. Jean-Pierre Sommadossi to the Board of Directors

BUFFALO, N.Y., June 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Kinex Pharmaceuticals, LLC announced today that Dr. David Hsia has elected to retire from the Board of Directors but will continue to support the company as a Senior Advisor to the Company. After an extensive search, the Board has appointed Dr. Jean-Pierre Sommadossi to the Board of Directors to fill the Board seat vacated by Dr. Hsia.

Dr. Jean-Pierre Sommadossi is a veteran in the field of biotechnology.  Dr. Sommadossi was the Principal Founder of Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc and a co-Founder of Pharmasset, Inc, and served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Idenix Pharmaceuticals from November 2000 to November 2010. From 1998 to November 2000, Dr. Sommadossi has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors and then as Executive President and Chief Scientific Officer. Under his leadership, Idenix has raised more than $450 million in private and public equity financings and entered into multiple strategic partnerships, including those with Sumitomo and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) as well as a landmark biotechpharma transaction with Novartis Pharma AG in 2003. Prior to founding Idenix, Dr. Sommadossi was on the Faculty of The University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine since March 1985. He has served as a Professor of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Clinical Pharmacology as well as an Associate Director of both the Center for AIDS Research and The Liver Center from June 1992 to November 2000. Dr Sommadossi has authored over 180 peer-reviewed publications and holds more than 50 US patents related to the treatment of Cancer and Infectious Diseases. Dr Sommadossi has earned his Pharm.D. and Ph.D. in Pharmacology degrees from the University of Marseilles in France. He was a postdoctoral Fogarty Fellow at the National Cancer Institute and the Medical College of Virginia and a recipient of a Faculty Award from The American Cancer Society. Dr. Sommadossi currently is a Senior Advisor to PureTech Ventures. Dr. Sommadossi was recently named to the Therapeutics Advisory Council of Harvard Medical School.

Mr. Chuck Lannon, Chair of the Nominating and Corporate Governance, stated, "Jean-Pierre brings a strong background of biotechnology and public company experience. His background is ideally suited to assist the Kinex team in the planned build-up of the operation. The Committee is pleased to have Jean-Pierre join the Board and we look forward to working closely with him. We also thank Dr. Hsia for his valuable contributions to the Kinex Board and we are delighted to have him continue helping the Company as an advisor."

In accepting his appointment to the Board of Directors, Dr. Sommadossi stated, "I was extremely impressed by the vast amount of pharmaceutical expertise and business experience in Kinex. The Company has a strong pipeline of clinical oncology candidate drugs in various stages of clinical development. The Company has a number of excellent pharmaceutical partners for developing their pipeline which is very unusual for this early stage but rapidly growing company. I am excited to work with the Kinex Board and management in furthering the Company's strategic objectives and support the future growth of the company."

Dr. David Hsia, "I am honored to have served the Kinex Board for the last four years and will continue to help the Company as a Senior Advisor. I am delighted to have a biotech veteran, Dr. Jean-Pierre Sommadossi, fill my seat to continue helping the Company realize its potential. Jean-Pierre's business experience coupled with his scientific expertise will be crucial ingredients to assist the Company for the next stage of development."

Dr. Johnson Lau, Chairman of the Board, commented, "David has contributed enormously to the growth of the Company. The fond memory of discussing various scientific approaches to the formulation and development of our pipeline, as well as the best strategy to grow the Company, are still resonating with me. Although he has other time commitments, his willingness to continue supporting the Company as a Senior Advisor is a reflection of his commitment to support the Company. The entire Board would like to express our most grateful thanks to David for his contributions to the Company."

Kinex Inquiries:

Lyn M. Dyster, Ph.D.
Senior VP, Operations
Kinex Pharmaceuticals
701 Ellicott Street
Buffalo, NY 14203
USA
E-mail: [email protected]

SOURCE Kinex Pharmaceuticals, LLC