Cirius Therapeutics Expands Board of Directors with Appointment of Dennis M. Fenton

KALAMAZOO, Mich. and SAN DIEGO, Jan. 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Cirius Therapeutics, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies to treat liver disease, announced today that Dennis Fenton, Ph.D., has been appointed to the company's board of directors as an independent member.

"Having an industry veteran of Dennis' caliber join our board adds considerable depth and breadth to our company's stellar leadership team," said Bob Baltera, chief executive officer of Cirius. "We expect Dennis' wealth of industry expertise will be invaluable as we continue to advance our lead product candidate through a Phase 2b trial in NASH and plan for the next phase of growth."

Dr. Fenton brings more than forty years of experience in biopharmaceutical drug development and commercialization to this position. During a 25-year tenure at Amgen, he served as executive vice president of operations and held numerous additional executive leadership roles in operations, process development, sales, marketing, research, engineering and manufacturing.

Since retiring from Amgen in 2008, Dr. Fenton has served as an independent biotechnology consultant and serves on several public and private company boards including Portola Pharmaceuticals, Pfenex, Sienna Biopharmaceuticals, Omniox, and Modern Meadow. Dr. Fenton previously served on the boards of directors of Kythera, Amira, Hospira, Dendreon Corp., Xenoport and Genzyme Corporation. He is also a member of the board of trustees of the Keck Graduate Institute. Dr. Fenton received a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Manhattan College and a Ph.D. in Microbiology from Rutgers University.

"I look forward to working with the board and management team at Cirius," said Dr. Fenton. "NASH is a critical disease affecting millions of people and I welcome the opportunity to help make a difference for these individuals."

About Cirius Therapeutics

Cirius Therapeutics is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies to treat liver disease. The company's lead product is MSDC-0602K, a molecule that restores metabolic balance at its root – through mitochondrial function – to resolve the underlying pathophysiology of NASH. Cirius is actively enrolling patients in a Phase 2b clinical trial called the EMMINENCE trial, to evaluate MSDC-0602K in patients with NASH and liver fibrosis. Cirius is backed by Frazier Healthcare Partners and Novo A/S, who led the company's $40 million Series A round, as well as Adams Street Partners and Hopen Life Science Ventures.

For more information about Cirius Therapeutics, visit www.ciriustx.com.

SOURCE Cirius Therapeutics

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