Mast Therapeutics Hosting 2nd Annual Sickle Cell Disease Therapeutics Conference On September 19, 2013

Conference Will Include Clinical-Stage Company Presentations & Sickle Cell Disease Expert Panels

News provided by

Sep 06, 2013, 08:00 ET

SAN DIEGO, Sept. 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mast Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE MKT: MSTX) today announced the 2^nd Annual Sickle Cell Disease Therapeutics Conference will take place on September 19^th, 2013 at the Four Seasons Hotel in New York City (Cosmopolitan Suite). The conference is intended to serve as a forum to raise awareness for sickle cell disease and will include presentations from leading companies in sickle cell disease and discussions with experts regarding the latest advancements and trends in treatment. Conference sponsors include The Pierre Fabre Foundation, Canaccord Genuity, Piper Jaffray, Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton, LLP, Pharm-Olam International and Theradex Systems, Inc.

Six public and private companies developing new treatment options for patients with sickle cell disease, including bluebird bio (NASDAQ GS: BLUE) and Mast Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE MKT: MSTX) will be presenting.

Conference attendees will hear from leaders in the sickle cell disease medical and advocacy communities, including:

Althea Grant, PhD, Chief of the Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch in the Division of Blood Disorders of the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities at the Centers for Disease Control
Wally R. Smith, MD, Professor of Medicine at Virginia Commonwealth University
Susan P. Perrine, MD, Professor, Pediatrics, Medicine, Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Cancer Center; Director, Hemolgobinopathy Thalassemia Research Unit at the Boston University School of Medicine
Gary A. Gibson, President & CEO of The Martin Center Sickle Cell Initiative
Beatrice Garrette, Directrice Generale, The Pierre Fabre Foundation
Nirmish Shah, MD, Assistant Professor, Director of Sickle Cell Transition, Program, Division of Hematology, Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at Duke University

Question & answer sessions will be moderated by the following healthcare analysts:

Ritu S. Baral, Managing Director, Senior Analyst, Biotechnology Equity Research, Canaccord Genuity
Edward A. Tenthoff, Managing Director and Senior Research Analyst, Piper Jaffray

"The Mast team is deeply committed to advancing the research and care of patients with sickle cell disease. Our commitment includes conducting one of the largest pivotal clinical studies in sickle cell disease crisis intervention (EPIC) with our lead product candidate MST-188, creating and hosting the Annual Sickle Cell Disease Therapeutics Conference and sponsoring and supporting sickle cell community based organizations and events across the country," stated Brian M. Culley, Chief Executive Officer of Mast Therapeutics. "This disease was identified over one hundred years ago, but only one FDA-approved drug is available, and none are available to treat an on-going vaso-occlusive crisis or the underlying ischemia and infarction that play a role in reducing the average life expectancy to around 45 years. Awareness leads to investment, development, and eventually, to new treatments. This conference offers an excellent forum for investors and potential partners to review the latest advancements for patients suffering with this rare disease."

More information can be found on the conference web site at www.scdconference.com.

About Mast Therapeutics

Mast Therapeutics, Inc. is a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company headquartered in San Diego, California. The Company is leveraging the MAST (Molecular Adhesion and Sealant Technology) platform, derived from over two decades of clinical, nonclinical and manufacturing experience with purified and non-purified poloxamers, to develop MST-188, its lead product candidate, for serious or life-threatening diseases with significant unmet needs. MST-188 is a cytoprotective, hemorheologic, anti-inflammatory and anti-thrombotic agent that has potential utility in diseases or conditions characterized by microcirculatory insufficiency (endothelial dysfunction and/or impaired blood flow).

The Company is enrolling subjects in EPIC, a pivotal phase 3 study of MST-188 in sickle cell disease. The Company plans to initiate a phase 2 clinical study of MST-188 in acute limb ischemia, a complication of peripheral arterial disease, in early 2014. More information can be found on the Company's web site at www.masttherapeutics.com.

Mast Therapeutics™ and the corporate logo are trademarks of Mast Therapeutics, Inc.

Forward Looking Statements

Mast Therapeutics cautions you that statements included in this press release that are not a description of historical facts are forward-looking statements that are based on the Company's current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Company's development plans for MST-188 in acute limb ischemia, including the timing of initiation of the planned phase 2 study. Among the factors that could cause or contribute to material differences between the Company's actual results and the expectations indicated by the forward-looking statements are risks and uncertainties that include, but are not limited to: delays in the commencement of clinical studies, including as a result of difficulties in obtaining regulatory agency agreement on clinical development plans or clinical study design, opening trial sites, enrolling study subjects and manufacturing sufficient quantities of clinical trial material; the potential for institutional review boards or the FDA or other regulatory agencies to require additional nonclinical or clinical studies prior to initiation of a planned clinical study; and other risks and uncertainties more fully described in the Company's press releases and periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission are available at www.sec.gov.

You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date when made. Mast Therapeutics does not intend to revise or update any forward-looking statement set forth in this press release to reflect events or circumstances arising after the date hereof, except as may be required by law.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120612/LA22456LOGO-a)

SOURCE Mast Therapeutics, Inc.