Adial Appoints Renowned Pharmaceutical Executive Cary J. Claiborne to Board of Directors

Rhea-AI Summary

Adial Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ADIL; ADILW) announced the appointment of Cary J. Claiborne to its Board of Directors, expanding the board to seven members. Claiborne brings extensive experience, having previously served as CFO of Indivior PLC and Sucampo Pharmaceuticals. His expertise in governance and finance is expected to support Adial as it advances its Phase 3 clinical trial of AD04 for alcohol use disorder and prepares for potential commercialization. Adial aims to leverage Claiborne's track record to enhance its corporate governance and strategic initiatives.

Positive

• Cary Claiborne's appointment adds valuable experience in finance and governance.
• Expected contributions from Claiborne as Adial progresses with its AD04 clinical trial.
• Strengthened leadership could enhance corporate governance.

Negative

• Concerns regarding continuity and experience gaps due to management change.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Nov. 03, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Adial Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADIL; ADILW), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies for the treatment and prevention of addiction and related disorders, today announced the appointment of Cary J. Claiborne to the Board of Directors, increasing the number of board members to seven.

Mr. Claiborne previously served as CFO and board member of Indivior PLC, a publicly traded specialty pharmaceutical company developing medicines to treat addiction and serious mental illnesses. Among his accomplishments, Mr. Claiborne led the company’s spin off from its then parent company, Reckitt Benckiser, to become an independent, listed company. While at Indivior, he established and oversaw corporate reporting, internal audit, tax, treasury, external audit and information technology.

Prior to joining Indivior, Mr. Claiborne served as the CFO of Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a global biopharmaceutical company, which was later sold to Mallinckrodt. Before joining Sucampo, Mr. Claiborne served as CFO and Corporate Secretary of Osiris Therapeutics, Inc., and oversaw corporate finance during the company's initial public offering. He graduated from Rutgers University with a B.A. in Business Administration and from Villanova University with an M.B.A., and was a National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Governance Fellow.

William Stilley, Adial’s Chief Executive Officer, stated, “We are honored to welcome Cary to the board of directors and believe he will be an important addition at this exciting time in our development, as we move closer to completion of our ONWARD Phase 3 trial of AD04 for the treatment of alcohol use disorder. Moreover, we believe his experience will be invaluable as we begin preparations for the commercial launch of AD04, assuming our trial is successful. We also look forward to his contributions as we seek to advance our Purnovate adenosine platform toward clinical trials, and potentially establish partnership opportunities. Given Cary’s impressive track record in finance and governance, we believe his appointment is a further illustration of our commitment to the highest levels of corporate governance.”

About Adial Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Adial Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies for the treatment and prevention of addiction and related disorders. The Company’s lead investigational new drug product, AD04, is a genetically targeted, serotonin-3 receptor antagonist, therapeutic agent for the treatment of Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) and is currently being investigated in the Company’s landmark ONWARD™ pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial for the potential treatment of AUD in subjects with certain target genotypes, which are to be identified using the Company’s proprietary companion diagnostic genetic test. A Phase 2b clinical trial of AD04 for the treatment of AUD showed promising results in reducing frequency of drinking, quantity of drinking and heavy drinking (all with statistical significance), and no overt safety concerns (there were no statistically significant serious adverse events reported). AD04 is also believed to have the potential to treat other addictive disorders such as Opioid Use Disorder, gambling, and obesity. The Company is also developing adenosine analogs for the treatment of pain and other disorders. Additional information is available at www.adialpharma.com.

About Purnovate, Inc.

Purnovate, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Adial Pharmaceuticals, is a pharmaceutical development and chemistry company focused on inventing and developing selective, potent, stable, and soluble adenosine analogs to treat diseases and disorders such as pain, cocaine addiction, inflammation, infectious disease, cancer, asthma, and diabetes. Additional information is available at www.purnovate.com.

Forward Looking Statements

This communication contains certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws. Such statements are based upon various facts and derived utilizing numerous important assumptions and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Statements preceded by, followed by or that otherwise include the words "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "projects," "estimates," "plans" and similar expressions or future or conditional verbs such as "will," "should," "would," "may" and "could" are generally forward-looking in nature and not historical facts, although not all forward-looking statements include the foregoing. The forward-looking statements include statements regarding Mr. Claiborne’s expected contribution to the Adial Board of Directors and Adial, advancing our Purnovate adenosine platform toward clinical trials and potential partnership opportunities and the potential of AD04 to treat other addictive disorders such as Alcohol Use Disorder, Opioid Use Disorder, gambling, and obesity. Any forward-looking statements included herein reflect our current views, and they involve certain risks and uncertainties, including, among others, Mr. Claiborne’s ability to provide value to Adial as expected, our ability to enroll patients within the timelines anticipated and complete clinical trials on time and achieve desired results and benefits as expected, our ability to obtain regulatory approvals for commercialization of product candidates or to comply with ongoing regulatory requirements, regulatory limitations relating to our ability to promote or commercialize our product candidates for specific indications, acceptance of our product candidates in the marketplace and the successful development, marketing or sale of our products, our ability to maintain our license agreements, the continued maintenance and growth of our patent estate, our ability to establish and maintain collaborations, our ability to obtain or maintain the capital or grants necessary to fund our research and development activities, and our ability to retain our key employees or maintain our Nasdaq listing. These risks should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read together with the other cautionary statement included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it was initially made. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise, unless required by law.

Contact:
Crescendo Communications, LLC
David Waldman / Natalya Rudman
Tel: 212-671-1021
Email: adil@crescendo-ir.com

FAQ

Who is Cary J. Claiborne and what is his role in Adial Pharmaceuticals?

Cary J. Claiborne is the newly appointed member of the Board of Directors at Adial Pharmaceuticals, bringing significant experience from his previous roles in other pharmaceutical companies.

What experience does Cary J. Claiborne bring to Adial Pharmaceuticals?

Claiborne has extensive experience in corporate finance and governance, having served as CFO of Indivior PLC and Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, which will be beneficial for Adial's financial oversight.

What is the significance of the AD04 trial for Adial Pharmaceuticals?

The AD04 trial is a pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial aimed at treating alcohol use disorder, and its success could lead to commercialization opportunities for Adial.

How might Claiborne's appointment impact Adial's future?

Claiborne's experience is expected to bolster Adial's corporate governance and strategic decision-making as the company approaches critical development milestones.