Concentric Analgesics Names Thomas B. King to Board of Directors

Company Launches New Program in Osteoarthritis Pain

Oct. 17, 2017

LOS ALTOS, Calif.-- Concentric Analgesics, Inc., a development-stage biopharmaceutical pain company, announced today that it has appointed Thomas B. King to its Board of Directors. Mr. King brings nearly 40 years of leadership experience building, operating and selling multiple biopharmaceutical businesses.

“Tom brings significant strategic development, regulatory and commercialization experience to the Concentric Analgesics board, which will be valuable as we advance our lead program, CA-008, in post-surgical pain to the clinic, and look to commence IND-enabling studies for CA-011, our osteoarthritis pain program,” said John Donovan, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Concentric Analgesics. “We are thrilled to have Tom join the Concentric team, particularly at such a transformative time for the company.”

Most recently, King served as President, CEO and a member of the board of directors at Alexza Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: ALXA) from 2003 to 2016, when it was acquired by Grupo Ferrer. Previously, he served as President, CEO and a member of the board of directors of Cognetix, and held similar positions at Anesta Corporation, until its acquisition by Cephalon in 2000. King currently serves on the board of directors of Satsuma Pharmaceuticals, Vivus and Faraday Pharmaceuticals. He is a mentor at SPIRE Bioventures, a consortium for biotechnology entrepreneurs, and an advisory board member of the University of Colorado BioFrontiers Institute.

“The successful management of pain – both acute and chronic – is one of the most significant health problems we continue to face in the U.S. In my career, I have worked on the development of multiple pain products and I am excited to join the Concentric team in its mission to develop breakthrough, non-opioid pain therapeutics,” said King. “Through its innovative prodrug approach of delivering capsaicin, whose safety profile and efficacy are well understood, I believe both of Concentric’s programs possess reduced development path risk and large commercial potential.”

In addition to Concentric’s lead program in post-surgical pain, the company’s new therapeutic program, CA-011, addresses osteoarthritis (“OA”), the most common joint disease affecting over 30 million Americans, more than 14 million of whom suffer from osteoarthritis of the knee.

Opioids are prescribed to approximately 50% of patients suffering from OA pain. Advances in intra-articular (“IA”) therapies have largely been driven by corticosteroids and hyaluronic acid, which offer modest, incremental benefit. With the goal of providing three to six months of pain relief via a single injection, Concentric Analgesics’ novel, nonopioid treatment has the potential to provide long-lasting relief for knee OA sufferers, 5.2 million of whom currently receive IA injections.

Edwin Su, M.D., Associate Attending Orthopedic Surgeon, Hospital for Special Surgery and Associate Professor of Orthopedic Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical College stated: “The known safety and efficacy of capsaicin is an unusually positive starting point for Concentric Analgesics’ osteoarthritis program. If CA-011 can deliver on its intended therapeutic profile, it would meaningfully improve care for osteoarthritis patients, be a frontline intra-articular therapy in my practice, and likely establish an important new standard of care among clinicians everywhere.”

In 2015, OA accounted for more than $185 billion in U.S. health care expenditures and its prevalence is expected to continue to increase as a result of aging, obesity and sports injuries.

ABOUT CA-008 & CA-011

Concentric Analgesic’s lead investigational product candidates, CA-008 & CA-011, are water-soluble prodrugs that convert into capsaicin – the naturally occurring molecule that gives chili peppers their heat and is a potent TRPV-1 agonist. Capsaicin, which has a long history of use as a topical analgesic, selectively and reversibly desensitizes pain conducting nerve fibers (C-fiber nociceptors). TRPV-1 agonism evokes an initial neuronal excitation that is followed by a durable refractory state to provide long lasting analgesia.

ABOUT CONCENTRIC ANALGESICS

Concentric Analgesics, Inc. is a privately-held development-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing novel, non-opioid therapeutics for the management of acute and chronic pain. Concentric’s lead program for post-surgical pain, CA-008, is expected to begin Phase 1 clinical trials in the fourth quarter of 2017, while its osteoarthritis pain program, CA-011, is expected to complete IND-enabling studies in 2018. For more information, please visit www.concentricanalgesics.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171017005688/en/