- Industry veteran Richard
Narido joins the NRx Pharmaceuticals management
team
RADNOR,
Pa., Sept. 14, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- NRx
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: NRXP) ("NRx Pharmaceuticals" or the
"Company"), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, today
announced that it has entered into an agreement (the "Agreement")
with LS Associates, a division of LifeSci Advisors, LLC ("LSA"),
pursuant to which LSA will provide certain consulting services to
the Company, including but not limited to, arranging for the
provision of the Company's Interim Chief Financial
Officer. In connection with the Agreement, the Company appointed
Richard Narido to serve as Interim Chief Financial Officer of
the Company. As Interim Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Narido will
serve as the Company's principal financial officer and principal
accounting officer.
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"I am pleased to welcome Richard to the team at NRx
Pharmaceuticals. He brings great experience and energy to our
dynamic company," said Stephen
Willard, Chief Executive Officer of NRx Pharmaceuticals.
"Additionally, we are pleased to have immediate access to LSA's
broad team of financial professionals, who will be available to us
as needed," he continued.
Prior to his appointment as the Company's Interim Chief
Financial Officer, Mr. Narido served as the Chief Financial Officer
of Lucira Health ("Lucira") until Pfizer Inc.'s acquisition of
Lucira in April 2023. From
July 2018 to March 2021, Mr. Narido served in various roles at
Assembly Biosciences, Inc., including most recently as Executive
Director, Finance, Controllership and Treasury. From June 2014 to June
2018, Mr. Narido served in various roles at Bio-Rad
Laboratories, Inc., including as Americas Head of Finance, Global
Commercial Operations. Prior to June
2018, Mr. Narido held various finance roles, including
Global Head Finance Reporting and Accounting for Novartis Vaccines
and Diagnostics and several industry-related positions, including
Business Unit Controller for McKesson Corporation. Mr. Narido
started his career with PricewaterhouseCoopers's Financial Audit
and Assurance practice. Mr. Narido holds a Bachelor of Science
degree from the University of San
Francisco and a Master of Science degree from the Pepperdine
Graziadio Business School.
The Company also today announced that it accepted the
resignation of Seth Van Voorhees,
Ph.D., former Chief Financial Officer of the Company, which was
tendered on September 11, 2023, as he
has decided to pursue other professional opportunities. His
resignation will be effective as of September 30, 2023, in order to facilitate a
smooth transition. "We thank Seth for his many contributions to the
Company, and we wish him well in his future endeavors," Mr. Willard
commented.
About NRX-101
NRX-101, a fixed dose combination of D-cycloserine and
lurasidone, has been granted Fast Track Designation, Breakthrough
Therapy Designation, a Special Protocol Agreement, and a Biomarker
Letter of Support from the FDA for S-TRBD. Additionally, the
product is being developed in chronic pain and PTSD.
Up to 50% of individuals with bipolar disorder attempt suicide
over their lifetime, and estimates indicate that up to 20% may
succumb to suicide. The only FDA-approved treatment for patients
with treatment-resistant suicidal bipolar depression remains
electroconvulsive therapy.
Conventional antidepressants can increase the risk of suicide in
certain patients; hence their labels contain a warning to that
effect. NRX-101 is a patented, oral, fixed dose combination of
D-cycloserine and lurasidone, neither of which has shown addiction
potential in preclinical models. Based on the results of a Phase 2
proof-of-concept study, NRX-101 received Breakthrough Therapy
Designation from the FDA for the treatment of severe bipolar
depression in patients with ASIB after initial stabilization with
ketamine or other effective therapy.
NRX-101 is one of the first oral antidepressants currently in
late-stage clinical studies targeting the NMDA-receptor in the
brain, which represents potentially a key new mechanism to treat
depression with and without suicidality, as well as chronic pain,
PTSD and other indications, as well as potential use in UTI.
About NRx Pharmaceutical
NRx Pharmaceuticals is a
clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutics
based on its NMDA platform for the treatment of central nervous
system disorders, specifically suicidal bipolar depression, chronic
pain and PTSD. The Company's lead program NRX-101, an oral,
fixed-dose combination of D-cycloserine and lurasidone, targets the
brain's N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor and is being
investigated in a Phase 2b/3 clinical
trial for suicidal treatment-resistant bipolar depression (S-TRBD),
which includes patients with both acute and sub-acute suicidality,
an indication for which the only approved treatment is electroshock
therapy. The Company has partnered with Alvogen Pharmaceuticals,
who owns the worldwide rights to NRX-101 for treatment of S-TRBD,
to help bring NRX-101 to a global population of patients with unmet
medical need. NRx Pharmaceuticals is currently exploring NRX-101's
potential to act as a non-opioid chronic pain treatment option and
is continuing to plan to enroll patients in an Israeli-based trial
of patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder with
depression and suicidality.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes "forward-looking statements" within
the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which may include, but
are not limited to, statements regarding our financial outlook,
product development, business prospects, and market and industry
trends and conditions, as well as the Company's strategies, plans,
objectives, and goals. These forward-looking statements are based
on current beliefs, expectations, estimates, forecasts, and
projections of, as well as assumptions made by, and information
currently available to, the Company's management. Actual results
could differ materially from those contemplated by the
forward-looking statements. A discussion of these and other
factors, including risks and uncertainties with respect to the
Company, is set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities
and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K,
as may be supplemented, or amended by the Company's Quarterly
Reports on Form 10-Q. Given these risks, uncertainties, and
factors, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such
forward-looking statements, which are qualified in their entirety
by these cautionary statements.
The Company assumes no obligation to revise any forward-looking
statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise. Accordingly, you should not place reliance on any
forward-looking statement, and all forward-looking statements are
herein qualified by reference to the cautionary statements set
forth above.
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SOURCE NRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.