VANCOUVER, Nov. 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ - Sierra
Oncology, Inc. (Nasdaq: SRRA), a late-stage drug development
company focused on the development and commercialization of
momelotinib, a JAK1, JAK2 & ACVR1 inhibitor with a potentially
differentiated therapeutic profile for the treatment of
myelofibrosis, today announced that it has closed its previously
announced underwritten public offering, with gross proceeds to
Sierra Oncology of $103 million.
Following the closing of this offering, Mr. Robert Pelzer, who has served as a member of the
company's Board of Directors since May
2015, has been appointed as the Chairman of the Board of
Directors. Sierra Oncology has also appointed Dr. Gaurav Aggarwal, Dr. Josh Richardson, Dr. Mona Ashiya and Dr.
Andrew Sinclair to the Board of
Directors, each of whom are affiliated with investors in the
offering. In addition, Mr. Donald
Parfet, Dr. Daniel Estes, Dr.
Nicole Onetto and Mr. Tran Nguyen have resigned from the Board of
Directors. The foregoing appointments and resignations were
effective as of November 22,
2019.
"It is a pleasure to welcome these outstanding individuals to
our Board of Directors. Their support and guidance will be
invaluable as we focus on executing the recently launched MOMENTUM
Phase 3 trial of momelotinib and prepare the groundwork for our
potential transition to a commercial entity," said Mr. Robert Pelzer. "We would also like to sincerely
thank our outgoing members for their service and dedication to the
company. In particular, we are extremely grateful to Don Parfet, who has served as Chairman of our
Board of Directors since the company's inception in 2003, for his
thoughtful leadership and unwavering dedication to Sierra
Oncology."
Robert Pelzer has served as a
member of our Board of Directors since May
2015. From September 2008 to
March 2013, Mr. Pelzer served as the
President of Novartis Corporation, a pharmaceutical company. From
2002 to 2008, Mr. Pelzer served as General Counsel at Novartis
Pharma AG. Prior to 2002, Mr. Pelzer held various positions,
including serving as General Counsel and Senior Vice President at
DuPont Pharmaceuticals from 1998 to 2001. Mr. Pelzer currently
serves on the Board of Directors of Qu Biologics and previously
served on the Board of Directors of Aquinox Pharmaceuticals and
Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Mr. Pelzer holds a BComm and an LL.B.
from the University of Alberta.
Gaurav Aggarwal, M.D., has served
as a Managing Director of Vivo Capital LLC, a healthcare focused
investment firm, since October 2016,
where he focuses on investments in life sciences companies. Dr.
Aggarwal previously served as the Chief Business Officer of Ocera
Therapeutics, as Managing Director of Investor Growth Capital, and
as a General Partner at Panorama Capital, L.P., a venture capital
fund. Earlier in his career, Dr. Aggarwal was an associate with
JPMorgan Partners, LLC, a private equity division of JPMorgan Chase
& Co. Dr. Aggarwal previously served on the Boards of Directors
of Hyperion Therapeutics, Inc. (acquired by Horizon Pharma plc) and
Microlin Bio, Inc. and on several privately held biopharmaceutical
companies. Dr. Aggarwal received his M.D. from Columbia University, College of Physicians &
Surgeons, and his B.S. in Agricultural Economics from Cornell University.
Josh Richardson, M.D., has served
as Managing Director of Longitude Capital since February 2016 where he focuses on investments in
biotechnology companies. From September
2014 to February 2016, Dr.
Richardson served as a Public Equities Analyst at HealthCor
Management where he managed small and mid-cap biotechnology
investments. Dr. Richardson received his B.S. in Biomedical Science
from the University of South Florida,
and his M.D. from the University of
Virginia.
Mona Ashiya, Ph.D, is currently a Partner at OrbiMed Advisors,
LLC, a healthcare focused investment firm. She has been at
OrbiMed since 2010 where she has been involved with a number of
investments in public and private biotech companies. Dr.
Ashiya received her B.A. from the University
of California, Berkeley and her Ph.D. in Cellular, Molecular
and Developmental Biology from the University
of Pittsburgh.
Andrew Sinclair, Ph.D., has
served in various positions since November
2008 at Abingworth LLP, a life sciences investment group,
where he currently serves as a Partner and Portfolio Manager. Dr.
Sinclair currently serves on the Boards of Directors of Soleno
Therapeutics, Inc. and Verona Pharma plc. Dr. Sinclair is a member
of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Dr. Sinclair received his B.Sc. in
Microbiology from King's College London and his Ph.D. in Chemistry
and Genetic Engineering at the BBSRC Institute of Plant Science,
Norwich.
The public offering of Series A convertible preferred
stock, together with Series A warrants and Series B warrants, each
to purchase shares of common stock, provided Sierra Oncology with
net proceeds of approximately $98.0
million, after deducting underwriting discounts and
commissions and offering expenses. Following the closing of the
offering, and after giving effect to (i) the previously-announced
issuance of shares of common stock and a warrant to purchase common
stock to Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Gilead) in consideration for
amending the royalty rates and milestones in an Asset Purchase
Agreement with Gilead for momelotinib, subject to certain
conditions, and (ii) the conversion of shares of Series A
convertible preferred stock into shares of common stock that will
occur following stockholder approval of a reverse stock split the
company expects to conduct, but before giving effect to such
reverse stock split, there are expected to be 415,786,654 total
shares of common stock outstanding and warrants to purchase
444,088,071 total shares of common stock outstanding.
About Sierra Oncology
Sierra Oncology is a late stage
drug development company focused on advancing targeted therapeutics
for the treatment of patients with significant unmet medical needs
in hematology and oncology.
Momelotinib, Sierra's lead drug
candidate, is a potent, selective and orally-bioavailable JAK1,
JAK2 & ACVR1 inhibitor with a differentiated therapeutic
profile in myelofibrosis encompassing robust constitutional symptom
improvements, a range of meaningful anemia benefits, including
eliminating or reducing the need for frequent blood transfusions,
and comparable spleen control to ruxolitinib. More than 1,200
subjects have received momelotinib since clinical studies began in
2009, including more than 800 patients treated for myelofibrosis.
Sierra recently launched the MOMENTUM
Phase 3 clinical trial, a randomized double-blind trial designed to
enroll 180 myelofibrosis patients who are symptomatic and anemic,
and who have been treated previously with a JAK inhibitor.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Fast Track
designation to momelotinib for the treatment of patients with
intermediate/high-risk myelofibrosis who have previously received a
JAK inhibitor. Momelotinib is wholly owned by Sierra Oncology and
is protected by patents anticipated to provide potential
exclusivity to 2040 in the United
States and Europe
(including Patent Term Extension or Supplementary Protection
Certificate).
Sierra is also developing a
portfolio of DNA Damage Response (DDR) assets, consisting of SRA737
and SRA141, and is conducting a campaign intended to seek
non-dilutive strategic options to support their further
advancement. SRA737 is a potent, highly selective, orally
bioavailable small molecule inhibitor of Checkpoint kinase 1
(Chk1), a key regulator of cell cycle progression and the DDR
network, and has demonstrated preliminary clinical efficacy. SRA141
is a potent, selective, orally bioavailable small molecule
inhibitor of Cell division cycle 7 kinase (Cdc7) with a potential
novel mechanism of cytotoxicity, and has successfully completed the
IND process with the FDA enabling the commencement of clinical
trials. Sierra retains the global
commercialization rights to SRA737 and SRA141.
For more information, please visit www.sierraoncology.com.
Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements
This
press release contains forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to,
statements regarding the issuance of shares and warrants to Gilead,
the anticipated timing and effectiveness of the Company's reverse
stock split, Sierra Oncology's expectations from current data,
anticipated clinical development and commercialization activities,
the expected timing of, and results of MOMENTUM, potential benefits
of Sierra Oncology's lead product candidate and other product
candidates and sufficiency of its capital resources. All statements
other than statements of historical fact are statements that could
be deemed forward-looking statements. These statements are based on
management's current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a
number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those described in the
forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are
subject to risks and uncertainties, including, among others, the
risk that Sierra Oncology may be unable to successfully develop and
commercialize product candidates, product candidates may not
demonstrate safety and efficacy or otherwise produce positive
results, Sierra Oncology may experience delays in the preclinical
and anticipated clinical development of its product candidates,
Sierra Oncology may be unable to acquire additional assets to build
a pipeline of additional product candidates, Sierra Oncology's
third-party manufacturers may cause its supply of materials to
become limited or interrupted or fail to be of satisfactory
quantity or quality, Sierra Oncology's cash resources may be
insufficient to fund its current operating plans and it may be
unable to raise additional capital when needed, Sierra Oncology may
be unable to obtain and enforce intellectual property protection
for its technologies and product candidates and the other factors
described under the heading "Risk Factors" set forth in Sierra
Oncology's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission from
time to time. Sierra Oncology undertakes no obligation to update
the forward-looking statements contained herein or to reflect
events or circumstances occurring after the date hereof, other than
as may be required by applicable law.
View original
content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sierra-oncology-announces-closing-of-103-million-public-offering-and-changes-to-its-board-of-directors-300965034.html
SOURCE Sierra Oncology