MARLBOROUGH, Mass.,
Feb. 14, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- RXi
Pharmaceuticals Corporation (NASDAQ: RXII), a clinical-stage RNAi
company developing innovative therapeutics that address significant
unmet medical needs, today announced the appointment of
James D. Griffin, MD, Chairman,
Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, to
its Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Griffin also serves as
Professor, Medicine, Harvard Medical
School and Director, Medical Oncology, Brigham and Women's
Hospital.
"I am honored to join RXi's team of Scientific Advisors," said
Dr. Griffin. He further added, "I look forward to working with the
entire team to advance their clinical pipeline using their
proprietary self-delivering RNAi technology in the field of
cell-based immunotherapy."
Dr. Griffin received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School in 1974. After residency
training in internal medicine at Johns Hopkins Hospital, he
completed a hematology fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital
and a medical oncology fellowship at Dana-Farber. In 1981, he
joined the staff of Dana-Farber, where he is chair of the
Department of Medical Oncology.
From 1993 to 1998, Dr. Griffin was editor-in-chief
of Blood. He is a professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and currently sits on the
scientific advisory boards of the Lombardi Cancer Center at
Georgetown University and the Johns
Hopkins Cancer Center and Case Western Cancer Center.
"Dr. Griffin's extensive knowledge and experience in medical
oncology will be instrumental in the development of our cell-based
immunotherapy program," said Dr. Alexey
Eliseev, Chief Business Officer, RXi Pharmaceuticals. He
further added, "We are thrilled to have him join our Scientific
Advisory Board as we continue to expand our development pipeline in
2017."
About RXi's Proprietary Self-delivering RNAi (sd-rxRNA)
Technology Platform
RXi's proprietary sd-rxRNA technology
has many advantages over its competitors in the RNAi space.
Scientists at RXi have designed chemically-modified RNAi compounds
with improved drug-like properties that are potent, stable and
specific. These proprietary compounds have built-in delivery
properties and therefore do not require a delivery vehicle for
local therapeutic applications. The enhanced properties of
sd-rxRNA include: efficient spontaneous cellular uptake,
stability, reduced potential for immune stimulation, and potent,
long-lasting intracellular activity. All cell types tested
(primary, neuronal and non-adherent) internalize sd-rxRNA compounds
uniformly and efficiently, resulting in potent and long lasting
silencing. sd‑rxRNA compounds have the ability to selectively
block the expression of any target in the genome, thus providing
applicability to a broad spectrum of therapeutic areas.
About RXi Pharmaceuticals
RXi Pharmaceuticals
Corporation (NASDAQ: RXII) is a clinical-stage company developing
innovative therapeutics that address significant unmet medical
needs. Building on the pioneering discovery of RNAi,
scientists at RXi Company have harnessed the naturally occurring
RNAi process which has the ability to "silence" or down-regulate
the expression of a specific gene that may be overexpressed in a
disease condition. RXi developed a robust RNAi therapeutic
platform, including self-delivering RNA (sd-rxRNA®) compounds, that
have the ability to highly selectively block the expression of any
target in the genome, thus providing applicability to many
therapeutic areas. Our current programs include dermatology,
ophthalmology and cell-based immunotherapy. RXi's extensive
patent portfolio provides for multiple product and business
development opportunities across a broad spectrum of therapeutic
areas and we actively pursue research collaborations, partnering
and out-licensing opportunities with academia and pharmaceutical
companies. Additional information may be found on the
Company's website, www.rxipharma.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release
contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements
include, but are not limited to, statements about: our ability to
successfully develop RXI-109, Samcyprone™ and our other product
candidates (collectively "our product candidates"); the future
success of our clinical trials with our product candidates; the
timing for the commencement and completion of clinical trials; our
ability to enter into strategic partnerships and the future success
of these strategic partnerships; and our ability to deploy our
sd-rxRNA® technology through partnerships, as well as the prospects
of these partnerships to provide positive returns. Forward-looking
statements about expectations and development plans of RXi's
product candidates and partnerships involve significant risks and
uncertainties, including the following: risks that we may not be
able to successfully develop and commercialize our product
candidates; risks that product development and clinical studies may
be delayed, not proceed as planned and/or be subject to significant
cost over-runs; risks related to the development and
commercialization of products by competitors; risks related to our
ability to control the timing and terms of collaborations with
third parties; and risks that other companies or organizations may
assert patent rights preventing us from developing or
commercializing our product candidates. Additional risks are
detailed in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and
subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q under the caption "Risk
Factors." Readers are urged to review these risk factors and
to not act in reliance on any forward-looking statements, as actual
results may differ from those contemplated by our forward-looking
statements. RXi does not undertake to update forward-looking
statements to reflect a change in its views, events or
circumstances that occur after the date of this release.
Contact
RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation
Tamara McGrillen
508-929-3646
tmcgrillen@rxipharma.com
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SOURCE RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation