Heat Biologics Announces Appointment of Greg Burel, Former Director of the Strategic National Stockpile, to its Biothreat Advisory Board and as Senior Advisor to the Company
Heat Biologics has appointed Greg Burel to its Biothreat Advisory Board as a senior advisor, enhancing its biodefense initiatives, particularly for anthrax and the RapidVax™ platform. Burel, with nearly 38 years of federal service, previously directed the Strategic National Stockpile, emphasizing the urgent need for effective biological threat responses. CEO Jeff Wolf highlighted Burel's experience in public health threats, which will bolster Heat’s biodefense portfolio. The company is focused on developing therapies to modulate the immune system through its innovative gp96 platform.
- Appointment of Greg Burel to Biothreat Advisory Board brings significant experience in biodefense.
- Focus on RapidVax™ platform for rapid response to biological threats may attract government contracts.
- Reliance on Burel's expertise raises concerns about continuity if he departs.
- Limited track record in commercializing biodefense products could hinder growth.
Burel to support anthrax and RapidVax™ biodefense initiatives as a platform for rapid response to known and unknown biological threats
DURHAM, N.C., March 23, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Heat Biologics, Inc. (“Heat”) (NYSE American: HTBX), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel biodefense assets and first-in-class therapies to modulate the immune system, announces the appointment of Greg Burel, former Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) Director of the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), to the Company’s Biothreat Advisory Board and as a senior advisor to the Company.
Mr. Burel served as the Director of SNS from March 2007 to January 2020. In this role, Mr. Burel directed the nation’s premier medical materiel preparedness and response organization charged with delivering critical medical assets to the site of a national emergency. In addition, his prior service includes senior management roles with increasing responsibility with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the General Services Administration (GSA). Mr. Burel recently retired after nearly 38 years of federal service in January of 2020.
Mr. Burel stated, “I am excited to support and help advance Heat’s biodefense initiatives. The COVID pandemic has only reinforced the urgent need for a rapid, safe, and effective response to potential biological threats. Moreover, current geopolitical events highlight the need for an effective response to biological weapons. For this reason, it is essential to have effective therapies that can be stockpiled in advance, and then rapidly customized, manufactured, and deployed to address imminent and future threats.”
Jeff Wolf, Chief Executive Officer of Heat, commented, “We are honored to welcome Greg to our Biothreat Advisory Board, given his decades of experience preparing for and responding to public health threats, including pandemics, chemical and biological agents and more. In addition to his role with the advisory board, he will also serve as a senior advisor and consultant to the Company, where he will provide strategic advice, support outreach initiatives for our core biodefense programs. He will also support our anthrax initiative and the development and rollout of RapidVax®, our novel cellular vaccine designed for rapid “plug and play” programming and stockpiling against emerging known and unknown biological threats. We look forward to leveraging his deep expertise as we seek to grow our biodefense portfolio in the US and abroad.”
In addition to Mr. Burel, current members of the Biothreat Advisory Board include former US Senator Mark Pryor; David Lasseter, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction; former US Representative Jack Kingston, who also serves as the Secretariat of the Alliance for Biosecurity; Andrew C. Weber, former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical & Biological Defense Programs; and Dr. Gregory Koblentz, Associate Professor at George Mason University and leading expert on chemical and biological weapons.
About Heat Biologics, Inc.
Heat Biologics is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing first-in-class therapies and vaccines to modulate the immune system. Heat’s gp96 platform is designed to activate immune responses against cancer or infectious diseases. The Company has multiple product candidates in development leveraging the gp96 platform, including HS-110, which has completed enrollment in a Phase 2 trial, various infectious disease/biological threat programs in preclinical development and a pipeline of proprietary immunomodulatory antibodies and cell-based therapies, including PTX-35 and HS-130 in Phase 1 clinical trials.
For more information, please visit: www.heatbio.com, and also follow us on Twitter.
Forward Looking Statement
This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 on our current expectations and projections about future events. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "may," "should," "potential," "continue," "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," and similar expressions. These statements are based upon current beliefs, expectation, and assumptions and include statements regarding leveraging Mr. Burel’s deep expertise as Heat seeks to grow its biodefense portfolio in the US and abroad. These statements are subject to leverage Mr. Burel’s expertise and to grow its biodefense portfolio, Heat’s ability to successfully consummate the merger of Elusys, the ability of Heat's therapies to perform as designed, to demonstrate safety and efficacy, as well as results that are consistent with prior results, the ability to enroll patients and complete the clinical trials on time and achieve desired results and benefits, especially in light of COVID-19, Heat's ability to obtain regulatory approvals for commercialization of product candidates or to comply with ongoing regulatory requirements, regulatory limitations relating to Heat's ability to promote or commercialize its product candidates for specific indications, acceptance of its product candidates in the marketplace and the successful development, marketing or sale of products, Heat's ability to maintain its license agreements, the continued maintenance and growth of its patent estate, its ability to establish and maintain collaborations, its ability to obtain or maintain the capital or grants necessary to fund its research and development activities and its cash and short-term investments providing significant runway to fund Heat’s current clinical programs and further expand Heat’s therapeutic portfolio , its ability to continue to maintain its listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market and its ability to retain its key scientists or management personnel, and the other factors described in Heat's most recent annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021 filed with the SEC, and other subsequent filings with the SEC. The information in this release is provided only as of the date of this release, and Heat undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this release based on new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by law.
Media and Investor Relations Contact
David Waldman
+1 919 289 4017
investorrelations@heatbio.com
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