Board Changes and Update

RNS Number : 0574A

Ovoca Bio PLC

31 January 2022

 

Ovoca Bio plc

("Ovoca" or the "Company")

Board Changes and Update

Dublin, Ireland, 31 January 2022 - Ovoca Bio plc (LSE: OVB; ISE: OVXA) a biopharmaceutical company with a focus on women's health, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Kristina Zakurdaeva, MD, PhD as an Independent Non-Executive Director effective immediately. Dr. Zakurdaeva succeeds Chris Wiltshire on the Board. Mr. Wiltshire has resigned from the Board and role of Chief Business Officer with immediate effect to pursue other business interests.

Dr. Zakurdaeva currently serves as CEO of New York-based Incuron (Buffalo, NY), a drug development company in the oncology sector. Before Incuron, she served as Chief Medical Officer at Gero (Singapore/Russia), a drug discovery company focused on aging and aging-related diseases, where she developed clinical strategy for the company's pipeline.

Prior to Incuron, Kristina worked as a Scientific Advisor at Bristol-Myers Squibb and later headed oncology and immunology R&D projects in the Biomed Cluster of the Skolkovo Foundation (Moscow) where she successfully launched the Cancer Center of Excellence. Dr. Zakurdaeva is a Founder and Chair of the Foundation Board for the Foundation for Cancer Research Support (Russia) and has authored numerous, recent, peer-reviewed publications and co-authored a scientific discovery in genetics. Kristina holds a medical doctor degree in internal medicine and hematology, as well as a PhD in genetics of acute leukemia.

Kirill Golovanov, Chief Executive & Interim Chairman of Ovoca Bio, commented: "We are extremely excited to appoint Kristina Zakurdaeva to our Board. Her appointment, following that of Anastasia Levashova, adds to the complementary skill sets and breadth of perspectives on the Board of Ovoca Bio. Dr. Zakurdaeva brings extensive expertise in biotech and drug development in the USA and globally. Her strong clinical and scientific background, as well as business development experience, will be invaluable in the next stages of Ovoca Bio's journey. On behalf of the Company, I would also like to thank Chris for his contribution to the Board and as Chief Business Officer."

Operational updates

In addition to these Board changes, Ovoca Bio today announces the following updates:

· Seventy percent of patients have now been enrolled in the Phase II dose ranging study assessing Orenetide (BP-101) being conducted in Australia and New Zealand. While the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impact clinical trial related activities globally and has affected our trial, the Company intends to complete recruitment of participants in H1 2022.

· The Marketing Authorization ("MA") application for orenetide is still under review by the Russian Ministry of Health (the "Minzdrav"). While Ovoca cannot be definitive about timelines, management remains optimistic with regard to approval perspectives for Orenetide in Russia and is hopeful that the review process will be completed shortly. A further announcement in relation to the approval process will be released by the Company as and when appropriate.

Additional Information:

Kristina Zakurdaeva (formerly Khodova) (aged 37 years) does not hold any ordinary shares or share options in the Company.

Current Directorships / Partnerships	Past Directorships / Partnerships
Incuron, Inc	-
OncoTartis, Inc
Tartis Aging, LLC
Foundation for Cancer Research Support (RakFond)

The Company confirms that there is no other information that is required to be disclosed under Schedule 2(g) of the AIM Rules for Companies and Rule 5.22 (b) of Chapter 5: Additional Rules for the Euronext Growth Market operated by Euronext Dublin.

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For further information:

Ovoca Bio plc

Kirill Golovanov (Chief Executive)

Tel [phone]

[e-mail]

Davy (Nominated Adviser, Euronext Growth Advisor and Broker)

John Frain / Daragh O'Reilly

Tel: [phone]

Consilium Strategic Communications

Chris Gardner, Chris Welsh, Carina Jurs

[e-mail]

Tel: [phone]

About Ovoca Bio

Ovoca Bio is a European-based biopharmaceutical company with a focus on women's health. The Company is currently developing a novel treatment for women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD).

The Company's lead product, BP-101, a novel synthetic peptide administered through a nasal spray, is clinically validated, with Phase II and Phase III studies conducted in Russia demonstrating statistically significant improvement in a number of key efficacy outcomes, including an increase in female sexual desire and reduction of symptoms of distress associated with HSDD.

Ovoca Bio is seeking to develop the drug for major global markets - in particular the United States and Europe, as well as obtain marketing approval in the Russian Federation. 

 

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