CARLSBAD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lineage Cell Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE American and TASE: LCTX), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing allogeneic cell therapies for unmet medical needs, today announced that it has appointed George A. Samuel III as Lineage’s General Counsel and Corporate Secretary. Mr. Samuel will lead the Company’s legal operations, bringing extensive corporate, transactional, intellectual property and commercial expertise which spans nearly 15 years across the life sciences and technology sectors as well as in private practice.

“We are pleased to welcome George to our leadership team and look forward to his contributions as we build Lineage into a leading cell therapy and cell transplant company,” stated Brian M. Culley, Lineage CEO. “George’s diverse experience across legal and other operational areas will be invaluable as we continue to execute on our clinical development plans. In particular, his transactional successes in business development and his intellectual property experience will be key resources as we evaluate partnership opportunities and expand collaborations for our OpRegen, OPC1 and VAC2 programs and work to unlock additional value from our extensive intellectual property portfolio.”

“I am looking forward to joining this dynamic and experienced team by leading Lineage’s legal operations at this exciting and transformative time,” stated George A. Samuel III. “The field of cell therapy is undergoing rapid growth and I’m delighted to have this opportunity to contribute to it.”

Prior to joining Lineage, Mr. Samuel most recently served as Director, Senior Counsel for Lytx, Inc., where he managed the commercial legal operations for an international video telematics SaaS company. Prior to that, Mr. Samuel served as VP, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Cardiff Oncology, Inc. (formerly known as Trovagene, Inc.), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing treatments in oncology. While at Cardiff Oncology, he advised on strategic, business development and operational decisions; oversaw capital raising efforts, regulatory compliance as well as SEC reporting; and managed intellectual property, including technology transfer and licensing. Mr. Samuel has also practiced corporate law at major law firms, including DLA Piper LLP and Cooley LLP, where he served as outside counsel to public and private companies in a variety of commercial transactions. Mr. Samuel received a J.D. from Columbia University School of Law, and a B.A. in Philosophy from Tufts University and is a member of the State Bar of California and New York.

About Lineage Cell Therapeutics, Inc.

Lineage Cell Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing novel cell therapies for unmet medical needs. Lineage’s programs are based on its robust proprietary cell-based therapy platform and associated in-house development and manufacturing capabilities. With this platform Lineage develops and manufactures specialized, terminally differentiated human cells from its pluripotent and progenitor cell starting materials. These differentiated cells are developed to either replace or support cells that are dysfunctional or absent due to degenerative disease or traumatic injury or administered as a means of helping the body mount an effective immune response to cancer. Lineage’s three allogeneic (“off-the-shelf”) clinical programs are in markets with billion dollar opportunities: (i) OpRegen^®, an investigational retinal pigment epithelium transplant therapy in Phase 1/2a development for the treatment of dry age-related macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness in the developed world; (ii) OPC1, an investigational oligodendrocyte progenitor cell therapy in Phase 1/2a development for the treatment of acute spinal cord injuries; and (iii) VAC, an allogeneic dendritic cell therapy platform for immuno-oncology and infectious disease, with investigational immunotherapy VAC2 currently in clinical development for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer. For more information, please visit www.lineagecell.com or follow the Company on Twitter @LineageCell.

Forward-Looking Statements

Lineage cautions you that all statements, other than statements of historical facts, contained in this press release, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements, in some cases, can be identified by terms such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “design,” “intend,” “expect,” “could,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “seek,” “should,” “would,” “contemplate,” project,” “target,” “tend to,” “look forward to” or the negative version of these words and similar expressions. Such statements include, but are not limited to, statements relating to Lineage’s ability to become a leading cell therapy and cell transplant company, to expand collaborations for its product candidate programs, and to unlock value from its intellectual property portfolio, and the commercial potential for cell therapy products. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause Lineage’s actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements in this press release, including risks and uncertainties inherent in Lineage’s business and other risks discussed in Lineage’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC). Further information regarding these risks, uncertainties and factors is included under the heading “Risk Factors” in Lineage’s periodic and other reports filed with the SEC, including Lineage’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, which are available from the SEC’s website. Lineage’s forward-looking statements are based upon its current expectations and involve assumptions that may never materialize or may prove to be incorrect. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they were made. Lineage undertakes no obligation to update such statements to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made, except as required by law.

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