Origenis Appoints Dr. Peter Seufer-Wasserthal as Chief Business Officer

Origenis GmbH, a German biotech company specializing in the discovery and development of highly selective small molecule kinase inhibitors for CNS disorders, today announced the appointment of Dr. Peter Seufer-Wasserthal as Chief Business Officer.

Dr. Seufer-Wasserthal brings 25 years experience in technology oriented business development to the company. Prior to joining Origenis, he served as Vice President Business Development at Intrexon Corporation XON and before that held several senior executive and business development positions at Codexis, Inc., CDXS, where he closed numerous licensing, research and supply agreements. Before Codexis, Dr. Seufer-Wasserthal managed a broad range of drug discovery collaborations, licensed pre-clinical candidates to Pharma partners and directed several drug development projects in the position of Senior Vice President of Business Development at Morphochem and Evotec. He holds a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the Technical University of Graz.

Origenis´ CEO Michael Almstetter welcomed Dr. Seufer-Wasserthal: "We are excited to have Peter join at this stage of our growth. Beyond our focus on highly selective small molecule kinase inhibitors for CNS disorders, Origenis has developed a comprehensive set of non-CNS and ophthalmological assets that are validated by several Pharma partnerships and have the potential to significantly contribute to the company's top line. Peter will lead Origenis´ business activities and grow our relationships in the pharmaceutical market to establish additional collaborations with leading companies in the field. I am confident that his deep industry insight and proven closing capabilities will be a tremendous asset to Origenis."

Notes

Origenis GmbH (www.origenis.com) is a privately-held German biopharmaceutical company developing brain-penetrating highly selective small molecule medicines and diagnostics for a variety of neurodegenerative and neuroinflammatory diseases.

Origenis leverages its unique capabilities in drug design, compound synthesis and characterization to engineer a continuous stream of proprietary IP-protected new chemical entities capable of permeating the blood-brain barrier. Origenis' approach has been validated by multiple partners resulting in a significant IP and R&D portfolio that ensures strong patent protection until at least 2032.

Origenis' lead product candidates address novel, clinically-validated targets Leucine Rich Repeat Kinase 2 (LRRK2) and Death Associated Kinase 1 (DAPK1), both of which are associated with neurodegeneration in a variety of chronic and acute brain diseases, including Parkinson‘s, Alzheimer's, dementia, and traumatic brain injury, among others.

These two internal therapeutic key pipeline programs are complemented by Origenis´ proprietary PET tracer programs, that enable a precision medicine approach, open new avenues towards innovative, robust and shortened clinical development pathways with potential for conditional approval after Phase II, and represent a diagnostic tool on its own to enhance drug development and increase overall probability of success.

The combination of its therapeutic with the proprietary PET tracer programs not only forms a sound basis for further clinical development, but also differentiates Origenis from all of its competitors.

Origenis is seeking to raise USD 30 mill. in a Preferred Series A Equity Financing to advance its internal key pipeline candidates towards IND and clinical Phase I and is looking forward to building a transatlantic syndicate of institutional investors.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180322005252/en/