RXi Pharma Appoints Medical Oncology Expert, Dr. James Griffin, To Scientific Advisory Board
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. sdrxRNA 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
