GERMANTOWN, Md., Feb. 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Neuralstem, Inc.
(Nasdaq: CUR), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the
development of central nervous system therapies based on its
neuronal stem cell technology, announced the appointment of
Richard J. Daly to the position of
President and Chief Executive Officer, effective February 15, 2016. Mr. Daly brings to the
position over 25 years of commercial pharmaceutical leadership
experience encompassing strategy, sales, marketing, and operations.
Mr. Daly is also being appointed to the company's Board of
Directors.
Mr. Daly succeeds Richard Garr,
J.D., who served as President and Chief Executive Office since
co-founding Neuralstem with the Chairman and Chief Scientific
Officer, Karl Johe, Ph.D., in
1996. Mr. Garr will continue to serve on the Board of
Directors and will assist in the transition period to maintain the
momentum of the company's corporate and clinical development
initiatives.
"I have been extremely proud to be a part of this dedicated team
of exceptional scientific and medical professionals bringing this
breakthrough science from the laboratory through the clinic," said
Mr. Garr. "With Mr. Daly's strong leadership and distinguished
25-year track record across many areas of pharma expertise, I
believe the company's clinical and corporate strategies are poised
for future commercialization and potential
partnerships."
"Neuralstem's neurogenic platform is an exciting and novel
technology. We are focused on advancing the clinical programs
toward commercialized therapies and creating stakeholder value,"
commented Richard Daly.
Mr. Daly most recently served as Managing Director of Ravine
Rock Partners, LLC; a healthcare commercial performance
acceleration firm where his expertise was leveraged as the Interim
Chief Commercial Officer of Catalyst Pharma until September
2015. Moreover, he led the turnaround initiatives of
Bristol-Myers Squibb – AstraZeneca Diabetes Alliance when serving
as the President of the U.S. Diabetes subsidiary from 2013 through
the AstraZeneca integration completion in 2014. Under Mr.
Daly's leadership the Alliance team successfully launched two major
products, Farxiga and Myalept.
From 2011-2013, Mr. Daly was a founding Partner and
Board Member of SagePath Partners LLC, a commercial
outsourcing provider to the pharmaceutical industry. SagePath was
sold to Ashfield Commercial & Medical Services in
2013.
Mr. Daly was also part of the executive leadership team that
executed the formation and growth of Takeda North America.
During his 13-year tenure, he served as Executive Vice President,
U.S., where he was responsible for new affiliates and business
development for the Americas. His achievements include building
three new companies in the region and launching multiple products
including Actos and Dexilant in the U.S and
Dexilant, Edarbi, and Mepact in new affiliate
regions of Mexico and Canada. Earlier in his career, he served as
the Vice President of Commercial Strategy at TAP
Pharmaceuticals, an Abbott Labs and
Takeda joint-venture, and Senior Vice President of Marketing
at Takeda North America.
He currently serves on the boards of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals
and Synergy Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Daly earned an M.B.A. from
Northwestern University's Kellogg
Graduate School of Management and holds a B.S. in Microbiology from
The University of Notre Dame.
Inducement Grant
In connection with Mr. Daly's appointment as President and CEO,
on February 15, 2016, the
Compensation Committee of the company's Board of Directors approved
the grant of non-qualified stock option to purchase 2,750,000
shares of the company's common stock. The option has an exercise
price of the closing price of $0.69,
a term of 10 years and vests as follows: 25% of the stock options
vest on the six month anniversary of Mr. Daly's appointment; 25% of
the stock options vest on the one year anniversary of Mr. Daly's
employment, and the remaining options vest quarterly over a three
year period thereafter. The grant was made as an inducement
material to Mr. Daly's acceptance of employment with the Company in
accordance with NASDAQ Listing Rule 5635(c)(4).
About Neuralstem
Neuralstem is a clinical development company focused on the
development of novel treatments for central nervous system
disorders based on its proprietary neuronal stem cell
technology. This technology enables a dual platform to
develop therapies in both small molecule compounds and stem cell
therapies.
Neuralstem's lead neurogenic small molecule compound, NSI-189,
is a novel therapy for the treatment of major depressive
disorder. The company has completed Phase 1a and 1b
trials and is expecting to initiate a Phase 2 efficacy study
for MDD.
Neuralstem's ability to generate neural stem cell lines from
human hippocampus, which were used for systematic chemical
screening for neurogenesis effect, has led to the discovery and
patenting of molecules that Neuralstem believes may stimulate the
brain's capacity to generate new neurons, potentially reversing
pathophysiologies associated with certain central nervous system
(CNS) conditions.
Neuralstem's patented technology enables the commercial-scale
production of multiple types of central nervous system stem cells,
which are being developed as potential therapies for many central
nervous system diseases and conditions.
Neuralstem's first stem cell product candidate, NSI-566, a
spinal cord-derived neural stem cell line, is under development for
treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Neuralstem has
completed two clinical studies, in a total of thirty patients,
which met primary safety endpoints. In addition to ALS, NSI-566 is
also being tested in a Phase 1 study to treat paralysis due to
chronic spinal cord injury, as well as in a Phase 1 study to treat
paralysis from ischemic stroke.
Neuralstem's next generation stem cell product, NSI-532.IGF,
consists of human cortex-derived neural stem cells that have been
engineered to secrete human insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1)
protein. The treatment is currently in preclinical investigation
for Alzheimer's disease (AD). In animal study reported at the 2015
Annual Meeting of the American Neurological Association, the cells
improved cognition and reduced amyloid beta (Aβ) plaque load in AD
mice.
For more information, please visit www.neuralstem.com or
connect with us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Information:
This news release contains "forward-looking statements" made
pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements
relate to future, not past, events and may often be identified by
words such as "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "believe,"
"seek" or "will." Forward-looking statements by their nature
address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. Specific
risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to
differ materially from those expressed in our forward-looking
statements include risks inherent in the development and
commercialization of potential products, uncertainty of clinical
trial results or regulatory approvals or clearances, need for
future capital, dependence upon collaborators and maintenance of
our intellectual property rights. Actual results may differ
materially from the results anticipated in these forward-looking
statements. Additional information on potential factors that could
affect our results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed
from time to time in Neuralstem's periodic reports, including the
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, and Form 10-Q for the three
and nine months ended September 30,
2015, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC), and in other reports filed with the SEC.
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SOURCE Neuralstem, Inc.