Scopus BioPharma Announces Appointment of Additional Directors

NEW YORK, Dec. 29, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Scopus BioPharma Inc. (Nasdaq: SCPS) today announced the appointment of additional members to its Board of Directors.  Scopus is a biopharmaceutical company whose lead drug candidate is a novel, targeted immuno-oncology gene therapy for the treatment of multiple cancers.

Joshua R. Lamstein, Chairman of Scopus BioPharma, stated, "We are delighted to be in a position to attract prominent industry leaders to our Board.  Our new directors are well-recognized for their leadership and accomplishments in the biopharmaceutical, biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, as well as in public capital markets and corporate governance."

The new directors are:

• Raphael ("Rafi") Hofstein, Ph.D.  Dr. Hofstein is a global leader in the biopharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.  Over his career, Dr. Hofstein has been instrumental in the founding and/or leadership of over 60 biopharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.  Most recently, these companies include: Fibrocor Therapeutics; Encyte Therapeutics (acquired by Zealand Pharma A/S); and Notch Therapeutics, a biotechnology company focused on gene-edited T cell therapies, which has a strategic partnership with Allogene Therapeutics.  Dr. Hofstein has also played key leadership roles in establishing industry partnerships and strategic alliances with leading global biopharmaceutical, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, including Amgen, Baxter, Celgene, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Pfizer and Takeda.
  
  
  Dr. Hofstein received his B.Sc. in Chemistry and Physics from The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Life Sciences and Chemistry from the Weizmann Institute of Science. Dr. Hofstein completed his postdoctoral training and research in the Department of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School.
  
  
• Lesley Russell, MB.Ch.B, MRCP (UK).  Dr. Russell has extensive leadership experience across diverse disciplines at numerous private and public biopharmaceutical, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies.  Such companies have ranged from venture-backed start-ups to global leaders.  Dr. Russell has managed all aspects of the drug development and regulatory approval processes for oncology and non-oncology drug candidates.
  
  
  Dr. Russell began her career at Eli Lilly and Amgen and thereafter joined U.S. Bioscience, a leading publicly-traded biopharmaceutical company subsequently acquired by MedImmune, which was itself later acquired by AstraZeneca.  Dr. Russell also served as Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Cephalon, a leading Nasdaq-listed biotechnology company acquired by Teva Pharmaceuticals.
  
  
  Dr. Russell has served on boards of directors and as chair and/or a member of audit, executive, nominating and compensation committees of many publicly-traded companies.  Dr. Russell currently serves as a director of Enanta Pharmaceuticals and Imugene, each a publicly-traded biopharmaceutical company.  Dr. Russell recently joined the board of directors of Chimeric Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company developing CAR T cell therapies, which is currently pursuing an IPO and public listing on the Australian Securities Exchange, or ASX.  Dr. Russell also serves as a director of Sojournix, a privately-held biopharmaceutical company.  Previously, Dr. Russell served as a director of Endocyte, a Nasdaq-listed public company acquired by Novartis, and AMAG Pharmaceuticals.
  
  
  Dr. Russell received her MB.Ch.B from the University of Edinburgh Faculty of Medicine. She is a member of the Royal College of Physicians and is registered with the General Medical Council.
  
  
• David S. Battleman, M.D.  Dr. Battleman has extensive experience across academia; the biopharmaceutical, pharmaceutical and medical technology industries; and pharmaceutical and healthcare management consulting.  Dr. Battleman was an Assistant Professor at Weill Medical College of Cornell University.  Subsequently, Dr. Battleman held a senior position at Pfizer, with responsibilities including developing strategies for various early-stage and established pharmaceutical products.  Dr. Battleman was also a senior principal and/or management consultant at IMS Health and Bain & Co.  Dr. Battleman is the principal and founder of TrueNorth Lifesciences, a provider of strategic consulting and financial advisory services relating to drug development, acceleration, optimization and commercialization for early-stage life sciences companies.  Dr. Battleman is a director of PAVmed.
  
  
  Dr. Battleman received his B.A. in Biology from The Johns Hopkins University, his M.D. from the Weill Medical College of Cornell University, his MSc. from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and his M.B.A. from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
  
  
• David A. Buckel, CMA.  Mr. Buckel has extensive experience as a senior executive officer, including chief financial officer and principal accounting officer, of numerous private and Nasdaq-listed public companies.  Mr. Buckel is the President and Managing Director of BVI Venture Services, a provider of financial, accounting and management services to private and public companies.  Mr. Buckel has extensive knowledge of corporate governance and public accounting, having served on the boards of directors of numerous companies as chair and/or a member of audit, corporate governance and nominating committees.  Mr. Buckel currently serves as a director of SharpSpring.
  
  
  Mr. Buckel was responsible for managing numerous initial and follow-on public offerings by high-profile companies.  These included a key spin-off of ARPANET, established by the Advanced Research Projects Agency of the United States Department of Defense, which implemented technologies which became the technical foundation of the internet.  Public offerings managed by Mr. Buckel were underwritten by major Wall Street firms, including Bear Stearns, Jefferies, Lehman Brothers, Oppenheimer and Robertson Stephens.
  
  
  Mr. Buckel received his B.S. in Accounting from Canisius College and his M.B.A. from the Syracuse University Martin J. Whitman School of Management. Mr. Buckel is a Certified Management Accountant.
  
  
• David Weild IV.  Mr. Weild is a globally recognized leader in capital formation and capital markets structure.  Mr. Weild authored and co-authored a number of definitive white papers that were key catalysts for new legislation and regulatory reforms, including the JOBS Act.  Mr. Weild is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Weild & Co., a boutique investment bank focused on enhancing capital access for emerging growth companies.
  
  
  Mr. Weild previously served as the Vice Chairman of Nasdaq and as a member of Nasdaq's Executive Committee.  For over 10 years prior to joining Nasdaq, Mr. Weild was a senior executive of Prudential Securities, including Head of Corporate Finance and Head of the Global Equities Transaction Group.  During his tenure, Prudential Securities acted as an underwriter for numerous biopharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including acting as a managing underwriter for an $18.9 million public offering of common stock for Celgene, with a post-offering market capitalization of approximately $140 million.
  
  
  Mr. Weild has extensive experience as a public company director, having served on multiple boards of directors, including as chair and/or a member of their audit and other committees.  Mr. Weild currently is a director of PAVmed and BioSig Technologies, both medical technology companies.
  
  
  Mr. Weild received his B.A. from Wesleyan University and M.B.A. from New York University Stern School of Business. Mr. Weild also studied at the Sorbonne, Ecoles des Hautes Etudes Commerciales (HEC Paris) and the Stockholm School of Economics.

Mr. Lamstein added, "Our directors have played significant roles in numerous private and public emerging growth companies, including some of the most storied names in biopharmaceuticals and biotechnology.  We are excited to work closely with our expanded leadership team, as we seek to advance groundbreaking therapeutics and achieve our mission of improving patient outcomes and saving lives."

The appointment of the new directors took effect in connection with the company's recent IPO and listing on the Nasdaq Global Market.

About Scopus BioPharma

Scopus BioPharma Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company developing transformational therapeutics capitalizing on groundbreaking scientific and medical discoveries from leading research and academic institutions.  The company's lead drug candidate is a novel, targeted immuno-oncology gene therapy for the treatment of multiple cancers.  The company is also developing additional new chemical entities to treat other serious diseases with significant unmet medical needs, including systemic sclerosis. Receive updates by following Scopus BioPharma on Twitter here.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may include forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks (including those set forth in the company's offering circular filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission) and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ from the forward-looking statements. The company expressly disclaims any obligations or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the company's expectations with respect thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any statement is based. Investors should realize that if our underlying assumptions for the projections contained herein prove inaccurate or that known or unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could vary materially from our expectations and projections.

Contact

Rodd Leeds/David Waldman
Crescendo Communications, LLC
Tel: (212) 671-1020
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Scopus BioPharma Inc.