NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Olatec Therapeutics LLC, a leader in the developing class of selective NLRP3 inhibitors, today announced that Gregory K. Palm, currently a senior advisor to The Goldman Sachs Group, has been elected to Olatec’s Board of Directors in connection with his making a substantial equity investment in the Company.
Prior to his becoming a senior advisor to Goldman Sachs in 2018, Greg served as a member of Goldman Sachs’ Management Committee beginning in 1999, when the firm became a public company, and as its General Counsel from 1992 when he joined the firm and was elected a partner. During his tenure at Goldman Sachs, Greg also chaired or was a member of various other firm-wide committees, including its Risk, Business Practices, Global Control and Compliance, and Operating Committees. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Greg was a partner in Sullivan & Cromwell, advising a variety of U.S. and foreign-based corporate and financial institution clients on matters relating to mergers and acquisitions, financings (including IPOs), joint ventures and corporate governance. Greg received an SB from MIT and a JD and MBA from Harvard.
Charles A. Dinarello MD, Olatec’s Chief Scientific Officer, Chairman of its Scientific Advisory Board and world-renowned leader in the field of immunology commented following Mr. Palm’s extensive due diligence on Olatec, “All of us at Olatec are impressed with the fundamental understanding Greg demonstrated in evaluating the potential for dapansutrile and our OLT Analogues to become a breakthrough in the field of inflammation therapeutics.” Dr. Dinarello continued, “Together with Greg, we reviewed comprehensive datasets from our human and animal studies, including gouty arthritis, heart failure, asthma, Alzheimer’s disease, spinal cord injury and breast and melanoma cancers. We are very pleased that Greg is joining us.”
Summarizing his reasons for joining Olatec’s Board of Directors, Greg Palm stated, “Olatec is developing an impressive platform of drug candidates. These drug candidates I believe have the potential, if approved, to address certain of the major diseases in our society today that are now known to be driven by inflammation. Co-founder and CEO, Damaris B. Skouras, has built an impressive and experienced drug development team, and I am delighted to join Olatec as a Director. My objective is to assist the Company in furthering its mission of establishing dapansutrile as a first-in-class, NLRP3 inhibitor for a broad range of diseases, with the ultimate goal of meaningfully improving patient outcomes and thereby peoples’ lives globally.”
Reflecting on Mr. Palm’s election, Olatec’s CEO & Chairman, Damaris B. Skouras said: “Greg’s brilliant intellect, character and expertise make him an ideal addition to our Board of Directors. Greg brings five decades of experience in advising clients and organizing governance and management structures. I believe Greg will make valuable contributions as the Company continues to execute on its first-in-class strategy and seeks partnership opportunities within the pharmaceutical industry.”
About Dapansutrile
Dapansutrile (lab code: OLT1177®) is an investigational small molecule, new chemical entity that specifically binds to and blocks NLRP3 (nucleotide-binding and oligomerization domain [NOD, leucine rich repeat-, pyrin domain-containing 3), the sensor molecule integral in the formation of the NLRP3 inflammasome. Inflammasomes are multiprotein complexes involved in intracellular surveillance of danger signals that trigger an intense inflammatory response, via generation of bioactive IL-1β and IL-18 through caspase-1 activation. Dapansutrile has been shown to prevent the formation of the NLRP3 inflammasome, which in turn inhibits the production of IL‑1β and IL‑18. NLRP3 is one of the most well characterized inflammasome sensors due to its involvement in a wide range of disorders, including sterile inflammation, infections and rare genetic autoimmune syndromes. Dapansutrile is in Phase 2 clinical development and has been well tolerated and shown to improve clinical outcomes in patients with acute gout flare (see The Lancet Rheumatology) and heart failure (see Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology). Dapansutrile has also been observed to have antiinflammatory properties and other promising activity in a broad spectrum of over 20 preclinical animal models including arthritis, asthma, acute myocardial infarction, contact dermatitis, multiple sclerosis, melanoma and breast cancers, spinal cord injury and Alzheimer’s disease.
About Olatec Therapeutics LLC
Olatec is a privately held, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a platform of oral NLRP3 inhibitors to treat and prevent a broad spectrum of acute and chronic inflammatory diseases known to be mediated by IL-1. In addition to the lead compound, dapansutrile, Olatec’s platform of proprietary compounds includes approximately 60 analogues (OLT Analogues) being screened as viable drug candidates. An IP portfolio protecting Olatec’s compounds consists of over 130 patents granted, covering dapansutrile and OLT Analogues. Olatec’s drug development team is comprised of experienced management and international experts in translational medicine with unparalleled expertise in inflammation and immunology and has been involved in the discovery and development of first-line inflammation treatments in the market today. For more information, please visit http://www.olatec.com.
Disclaimer & Forward-looking Statement
The information contained herein is being provided for information purposes only. The Company makes no express or implied representation or warranty as to the completeness of this information. Any forward-looking statements contained in this release are based on assumptions made by Olatec at the time this Press Release was prepared. Any forward-looking statement contained in this Press Release is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may be materially different from those contemplated in such forward-looking statements. All information with respect to industry data has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable and current, but the accuracy thereof cannot be guaranteed by the Company. Olatec does not undertake any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained in this Press Release to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date this Press Release was prepared, or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
