WALTHAM, Mass., March 19, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Morphic Therapeutic (Nasdaq: MORF), a biopharmaceutical company developing a new generation of oral integrin therapies for the treatment of serious chronic diseases, today announced that Simon Cooper, M.B.B.S., has joined the Company as Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Cooper is an accomplished leader in drug development with appreciable success and a proven history across all phases of clinical development and in a wide variety of therapeutic areas, particularly autoimmune, inflammatory, cardiovascular, and pulmonary diseases. Dr. Cooper most recently served as Chief Medical Officer of Keros Therapeutics.
“Simon brings clinical development expertise stemming from leadership roles across the entire spectrum of clinical development from first-in-human studies through FDA submissions and approvals of highly successful therapeutics. Of particular relevance to Morphic as we advance MORF-057, is Simon’s experience in the development and approvals for therapeutically effective and commercially successful autoimmune and inflammatory agents in the GI space,” commented Praveen Tipirneni, Chief Executive Officer of Morphic. “On behalf of the entire Morphic Team and our Board of Directors, I welcome Simon and look forward to collaboration on our exciting work.”
“In MORF-057, Morphic holds the possibility of creating a new treatment for inflammatory bowel disease with an ideal product profile: an orally administered, well tolerated and clinically meaningful therapeutic. I am also excited about the prospects for Morphic research programs for small molecules against non-integrin immunology targets and am looking forward to working with the Morphic Team,” commented Dr. Cooper.
About Simon Cooper
Dr. Simon Cooper was most recently Chief Medical Officer of Keros Therapeutics. Prior to Keros, Dr. Cooper served as Chief Medical Officer of each of Kadmon Holdings and Anokion, where he drove significant advances in program development and building key functional areas to support clinical development for assets in the autoimmune, inflammatory, and immuno-oncology areas. Dr. Cooper was previously Asset Strategy Leader at AbbVie where he played a key role in the development of risankizumab in a variety of indications including ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Dr. Cooper has also held the role of Vice President, Global Project Head for the sarilumab program at Sanofi and Group Program Medical Director at Novartis, leading the submission of the secukinumab program in psoriasis. Earlier in this career, Dr. Cooper held roles of increasing responsibility at research and development organizations including Wyeth Research, Napp Pharmaceutical Research, Roche, Human Genome Sciences and MedImmune. Dr Cooper holds a Bachelor of Medicine and a Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne Medical School.
Grant of Inducement Award
In connection with Dr. Cooper’s appointment as Chief Medical Officer, Morphic’s Board of Directors granted Dr. Cooper, pursuant to the Company’s 2024 Equity Inducement Plan and in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4): (i) stock options to purchase up to 170,000 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $33.46 per share, the closing price of our common stock on the grant date (the “Option Grant”), (ii) restricted stock units (“RSUs”) with respect to 14,000 shares of our common stock (the “New-Hire RSU Grant”) and (iii) RSUs with respect to 7,000 shares of our common stock (the “Sign-On RSU Grant” and together with the Option Grant and the New-Hire RSU Grant, the “Grants”). The Grants are subject to the terms and conditions of the 2024 Equity Inducement Plan, and the terms and conditions of the stock option and RSU agreements covering the Grants.
About Morphic Therapeutic
Morphic Therapeutic is a biopharmaceutical company developing a portfolio of oral integrin therapies for the treatment of serious chronic diseases, including autoimmune, cardiovascular, and metabolic diseases, fibrosis, and cancer. Morphic is also advancing its pipeline and discovery activities in collaboration with Schrödinger using its proprietary MInT technology platform which leverages the Company’s unique understanding of integrin structure and biology. For more information, visit www.morphictx.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to: our plans to develop and commercialize oral small-molecule integrin therapeutics and any proposed timing thereof; the initiation, execution and completion of clinical trials of MORF-057; and the ability of MORF-057 to treat inflammatory bowel disease, including ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, and other indications. Statements including words such as “believe,” “plan,” “continue,” “expect,” “will be,” “develop,” “signal,” “potential,” “anticipate” or “ongoing” and statements in the future tense are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions, which, if they do not fully materialize or prove incorrect, could cause our results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause our actual activities or results to differ significantly from those expressed in any forward-looking statement, including risks and uncertainties in this press release and other risks set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, among others, our or a partner’s ability to complete a current or future clinical trial of any of our current or future product candidates, our ability to develop or obtain regulatory approval for or commercialize any product candidate, our ability to protect our intellectual property, and the sufficiency of our cash, cash equivalents and investments to fund our operations. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof and we specifically disclaim any obligation to update these forward-looking statements or reasons why actual results might differ, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
Contact
Morphic Therapeutic
Chris Erdman
chris.erdman@morphictx.com
617.686.1718
