Salarius Pharmaceuticals Hosting Key Opinion Leader Call on Epigenetics, The Regulatory System That Affects Gene Expression

HOUSTON, Dec. 17, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Salarius Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: SLRX), a clinical-stage oncology company targeting the epigenetic causes of cancers, today announced that it will host a key opinion leader (KOL) call on Epigenetics, Thursday, December 19^th at 12pm Eastern Time.

The call will feature a presentation by KOLs Damon Reed, MD, Moffitt Cancer Center, and Johnathan Whetstine, PhD, Fox Chase Cancer Center, who will discuss Epigenetics, and how drugs that regulate gene expression (“epigenetic drugs”) are a viable strategy for treatment and management of cancer. They will also discuss recent clinical successes with epigenetic drugs, and what to expect from novel agents. Drs. Reed and Whetstine will be available to answer questions at the conclusion of the call.

The call will also feature a presentation by Salarius’ management team, which will provide an update on their lead program, Seclidemstat. Management will share the latest on their clinical program and on new areas of interest including immunotherapy and select tumor mutations. Seclidemstat, a reversible LSD1 inhibitor, inhibits LSD1’s enzymatic and scaffolding properties, representing a viable therapeutic option for patients who need it the most.

Damon Reed, MD is the Director of the Adolescent and Young Adult Program at Moffitt Cancer Center, an Associate Member of the Sarcoma Department at Moffitt Cancer Center and an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the University of South Florida. He is also on staff as a specialty physician at All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, FL. He is the Leader of the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation’s pediatric phase I consortium, the Sunshine Project. Dr. Reed’s research interests include chemotherapeutic approaches to sarcoma in the pediatric and adolescent and young adult population. He is interested in establishing relevant preclinical sarcoma models, establishing and testing biomarkers for targeted therapies and translating predictive testing and combinations of agents towards personalized medicine in sarcoma and other rare cancers. A graduate of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland, OH, Dr. Reed served a combined pediatric residency program at Boston Children’s Hospital-Harvard Medical School and Boston Medical Center-Boston University School of Medicine. He completed his fellowship training in pediatric hematology/oncology at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Dr. Reed has received numerous academic awards, including graduating valedictorian from Canfield High School and summa cum laude from the University of Dayton. He received the CWRU Medical Alumni Association Board of Trustees Award for Outstanding Service and Contributions to the School of Medicine and was named to the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. Dr. Reed is a member of several professional associations, including the American Association for Cancer Research, Connective Tissue Oncology Society and American Society of Clinical Oncology. Dr. Reed is the Principal Investigator of Salarius’s ongoing Ewing sarcoma Phase 1/2 clinical trial.

Johnathan Whetstine, PhD is the Program Leader of the Cancer Epigenetic Program at the Fox Chase Cancer Center. A rising star in the field of epigenetics, Dr. Whetstine has made groundbreaking discoveries that have expanded the field and provided significant implications for understanding tumor heterogeneity and drug response. In recognition of the promise of his research, he holds the prestigious Scholar award from the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and a National Institutes of Health R01 grant, as well as funding from the American Lung Association, Alex Lemonade Stand Foundation and AstraZeneca. Recently, Dr. Whetstine helped coordinate the Epigenetics Symposium: 15 Years of Lysine Demethylases: From Discovery to the Clinic, which brought together experts in the field of LSD1 research. Prior to Fox Chase, Dr. Whetstine was at Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Harvard Medical School in Boston, where he served as vice chair of the Epigenetics Program. He also held appointments as associate geneticist and associate professor in the department of medicine, respectively. He completed his postdoctoral fellowship in epigenetics/pathology in the laboratory of Yang Shi, PhD, at Harvard Medical School, and earned his PhD in pharmacology from Wayne State University in Detroit. Dr. Whetstine has served on Salarius’s Advisory Board.

About Salarius Pharmaceuticals

Salarius Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a clinical-stage oncology company targeting the epigenetic causes of cancers and is developing treatments for patients that need them the most. Epigenetics refers to the regulatory system that affects gene expression. In some cancers, epigenetic regulators often become dysregulated and incorrectly turn genes on or off leading to cancer progression. Drugs that can safely modify the activity of these epigenetic regulators may correct the gene changes that are driving the disease. The company’s lead candidate, Seclidemstat, is currently in clinical development for treating Ewing sarcoma, for which it has Orphan Drug designation and Rare Pediatric Disease Designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Salarius believes that Seclidemstat is one of only two reversible inhibitors of the epigenetic modulator LSD1 currently in human trials, and that it could have potential for improved safety and efficacy compared to other LSD1-targeted therapies. Salarius is also developing Seclidemstat for several cancers with high unmet medical need, with a second Phase 1 clinical study in advanced solid tumors, including prostate, breast and ovarian cancers. Salarius receives financial support from the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation to advance the Ewing sarcoma clinical program and is also the recipient of an $18.7 million Product Development Award from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). For more information, please visit salariuspharma.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this press release are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements may be identified by terms such as “will,” “can,”” “could,” “believe,” “feel,” “plan,” “allow,” “will,” “expect,” “provide,” “able to,” “position,” “anticipate,” “progress,” “potential,” “target,” and similar terms or expressions or the negative thereof. Examples of such statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: the company’s lead program, Seclidemstat, the company’s clinical program and new areas of interest including immunotherapy and select tumor mutations; the potential for Seclidemstat as viable therapeutic option for patients who need it the most; the company’s belief that Seclidemstat is one of only two reversible inhibitors of the epigenetic modulator LSD1 currently in human trials, and that it could have potential for improved safety and efficacy compared to other LSD1-targeted therapies; and the company’s development of Seclidemstat for several cancers with high unmet medical need, with a second Phase 1 clinical study in advanced solid tumors, including prostate, breast and ovarian cancers. Salarius may not actually achieve the plans, carry out the intentions or meet the expectations or objectives disclosed in the forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results and performance to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following: the ability of the company to raise additional capital to meet the company’s business operational needs and to achieve its business objectives and strategy; the company’s ability to project future capital needs and cash utilization; available sources of cash, including from CPRIT and its equity line; future clinical trial results; that the results of studies and clinical trials may not be predictive of future clinical trial results; the sufficiency of Salarius’ intellectual property protection; risks related to the drug development and the regulatory approval process; the competitive landscape and other industry-related risks; market conditions which may impact the ability of Salarius access capital under its equity line; the possibility of unexpected expenses or other uses of Salarius’ cash resources; and other risks described in Salarius’ filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including those under the heading “Risk Factors.” The forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release and are based on management’s assumptions and estimates as of such date. Salarius disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made.

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