IRVINE, Calif., Oct. 02, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Eledon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (“Eledon”) (NASDAQ: ELDN) today announced the appointment of Allan Douglas Kirk, M.D., Ph.D., to its Board of Directors. Dr. Kirk is internationally recognized for his work in organ transplantation, with a specialized focus on kidney transplants and transplant immunology. He is currently Chairman of the Department of Surgery and Surgeon-in-Chief at Duke University School of Medicine. He is also the David C. Sabiston, Jr. Professor of Surgery, a Professor of Integrative Immunobiology, and a Professor of Pediatrics at Duke.

“We are pleased to have Dr. Kirk join our Board of Directors at a pivotal time at the company following initiation of our Phase 2 BESTOW trial evaluating tegoprubart for the prevention of organ rejection in patients receiving a kidney transplant,” said David-Alexandre C. Gros, M.D., Eledon Chief Executive Officer. “Dr. Kirk’s renowned expertise in the field of organ transplantation, including kidney transplantation, will be incredibly valuable as we advance tegoprubart in clinical development on our mission to fulfill an urgent unmet need for the thousands of patients in need of an organ transplant. I look forward to working closely together.”

“Organ transplantation remains an area of significant unmet need – a need that is often overlooked or underrecognized – and my decades of research have been driven by my desire to improve immunosuppression regimens for transplant patients. Transplant recipients deserve new treatment options with better efficacy and fewer side-effects to help protect their transplanted organs,” said Dr. Kirk. “I am proud to join the Eledon team on their mission to bring patients a novel treatment option that has the potential to transform immunosuppression and improve the lives of patients.”

Dr. Kirk served as the inaugural Chief of the Transplantation Branch for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and has been a principal investigator for multiple clinical trials, including the first-in-human experience with novel immunosuppressive agents. Dr. Kirk has helped pioneer the use of co-stimulation pathway blockade to prevent organ rejection in transplant patients. He has a special interest in immune management of transplant recipients, including therapies that influence T cell co-stimulation pathways and adjuvant therapies that facilitate co-stimulation blockade to prevent the rejection of transplanted organs without undue suppression of protective immunity. His research is directed toward understanding transplant rejection and translating this understanding into improved therapies for transplant recipients. He has co-authored hundreds of peer-reviewed journal publications.

Dr. Kirk is a member of the Duke Transplant Center and is a core faculty member of the Duke Innovation & Entrepreneurship program. He also previously served as Editor-in-Chief for the American Journal of Transplantation. Dr. Kirk earned an M.D. from Duke University School of Medicine, a Ph.D. from Duke University and a B.S. from Old Dominion University.

About Eledon Pharmaceuticals and tegoprubart (formerly AT-1501)

Eledon Pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage biotechnology company with immunology expertise that is developing therapies to protect and prevent rejection of transplanted organs, as well as to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The Company’s lead compound in development is tegoprubart, an anti-CD40L antibody with high affinity for CD40 Ligand (also called “CD154”), a well-validated biological target with broad therapeutic potential. Eledon is headquartered in Irvine, California. For more information, please visit the company’s website at www.eledon.com.

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Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Any statements about planned clinical trials and the Company’s other future expectations, plans and prospects, as well as other statements containing the words “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “expects,” “estimates,” “intends,” “predicts,” “projects,” “targets,” “looks forward,” “could,” “may,” and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, including: risks relating to the safety and efficacy of our drug candidates; risks relating to clinical development timelines, including interactions with regulators and clinical sides, as well as patient enrollment; risks relating to costs of clinical trials and the sufficiency of the company’s capital resources to fund planned clinical trials; and risks associated with the impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. These risks and uncertainties, as well as other risks and uncertainties that could cause the company’s actual results to differ significantly from the forward-looking statements contained herein, are discussed in our quarterly 10-Q, annual 10-K, and other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which can be found at www.sec.gov. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof and not of any future date, and the company expressly disclaims any intent to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Investor Contact:

Stephen Jasper
Gilmartin Group
(858) 525 2047
stephen@gilmartinir.com

Media Contact:

Jenna Urban
Berry & Company Public Relations
(212) 253 8881
jurban@berrypr.com

Source: Eledon Pharmaceuticals