Tobira Therapeutics Announces Appointment of Ian Clements as Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications

Print 23 June 2015

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., June 23, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Tobira Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: TBRA), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel treatments for liver and inflammatory diseases, announced today the addition of Ian Clements, Ph.D., to the company's leadership team as vice president, investor relations and corporate communications.

Dr. Clements brings over 20 years of industry experience to Tobira. Most recently he led investor relations and corporate communications at Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc., which was recently acquired by Otsuka Pharmaceutical. Previously he headed IR and corporate communications at Sequenom, Inc. Dr. Clements also held positions at the Trout Group, an investor relations agency, and at Accelrys, Inc. He holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Manchester and an M.B.A. from the Open University in the U.K.  

"I'm delighted to welcome Ian to the Tobira team," said Laurent Fischer, M.D., chief executive officer of Tobira. "Ian's wealth of experience in communications and investor relations will be critical as we work to expand our outreach and presence with the investment, research and patient communities."

Dr. Clements will join the company in July.

About Cenicriviroc (CVC) and Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH)
CVC is an oral, once-daily, potent immunomodulator that blocks two chemokine receptors, CCR2 and CCR5, which are intricately involved in the inflammatory and fibrogenic pathways in NASH that cause liver damage and often lead to cirrhosis, liver cancer or liver failure. This mechanism differs from metabolic targets related to the pathogenesis of disease. Tobira believes this novel approach will establish CVC as both a single-agent and as a cornerstone treatment in multi-therapy regimens for NASH, for which there is currently no approved drug.

CVC is currently being evaluated in Tobira's Phase 2b CENTAUR study (identifier NCT02217475) and the company expects to announce the study's primary endpoint in mid-2016. CENTAUR is comparing CVC to placebo in approximately 300 patients with NASH and liver fibrosis, and includes endpoints identified as suitable for registrational studies in the findings of an FDA-AASLD workshop recently reported in Hepatology. To date, over 600 subjects have been dosed with CVC in Phase 1 and Phase 2b clinical studies, including 115 HIV-1 infected subjects on treatment for up to 48 weeks. CVC has been granted Fast Track status in patients with NASH and liver fibrosis, the patient population at highest risk of progression to cirrhosis.

NASH is an emerging health crisis impacting 3% to 5% of the U.S. population and 2% to 4% globally. It is the fastest growing cause of liver cancer and liver transplant in the U.S. due to the rise in obesity.

Additionally, this population is estimated to be three to five times larger than the size of the population with hepatitis C in the U.S.

About Tobira Therapeutics
Tobira is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of therapies to treat liver disease, inflammation, fibrosis and HIV. The company's lead product candidate, cenicriviroc (CVC), is a first-in-class immunomodulator and dual inhibitor of CCR2 and CCR5 being evaluated for the treatment of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and HIV. Learn more about Tobira at www.tobiratherapeutics.com.

This release contains forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements reflect management's current knowledge, assumptions, judgment and expectations regarding future performance or events. Although management believes that the expectations reflected in such statements are reasonable, they give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct and you should be aware that actual results could differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, the company's clinical development of cenicriviroc (CVC), the potential timing and outcomes of clinical studies of CVC undertaken now or in the future; the ability of the company to timely source adequate supply of its development products from third party manufacturers on whom the company depends; the company's limited cash reserves and its ability to obtain additional capital on acceptable terms, or at all; the company's ability to successfully progress, partner or complete further development of its programs; the uncertainties inherent in clinical testing; the timing, cost and uncertainty of obtaining regulatory approvals; the company's ability to protect the company's intellectual property; competition; changes in the regulatory landscape or the imposition of regulations that affect the company's products; and other factors listed under "Risk Factors" in the company's other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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