April 28, 2023
Dr. Steve Coats, former Senior Director of Chemistry at Cocrystal Pharma, joins OncoSpherix with over 25 years of drug discovery and development experience in biotechnology and large pharmaceutical companies.
Atlanta, GA – April 28, 2023 – OncoSpherix, Inc., a preclinical-stage cancer drug development company advancing HIF inhibitors in a variety of cancer indications, today announces the latest addition to their executive leadership team with the appointment of Dr. Steve Coats as Vice President of Chemistry. He has more than 25 years of drug discovery and development experience in biotech and large pharmaceutical companies. As VP of Chemistry, Dr. Coats will lead all chemistry efforts, including drug discovery and development. As part of the executive management team, he will also aid in the overall scientific and corporate strategy at OncoSpherix. Dr. Coats will report to Margaret K. Offermann, M.D., Ph.D., OncoSpherix’s President, CEO, and member of the Board of Directors.
CEO of OncoSpherix, Margaret K. Offermann, M.D., Ph.D. states, ”It is a privilege to work with Dr. Coats and have him guide the company’s chemistry efforts in developing small molecule therapeutics that should improve quality of life and longevity for patients with many forms of cancer.”
Dr. Coats had served as Senior Director of Chemistry for Cocrystal Pharma where he oversaw medicinal chemistry, chemical drug discovery, and drug development. He led the discovery and preclinical development of several novel antiviral nucleoside analogs for the treatment of HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C and other clinically important viruses. Prior to joining Cocrystal Pharma, he was a Principal Scientist at Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and Development, LLC., in Pennsylvania with responsibility for discovery project management and synthetic medicinal chemistry spanning numerous therapeutic areas. Before joining J&J, Dr. Coats served as group leader for focused library synthesis at Helios Pharmaceuticals where he was responsible for design, synthesis, and structure activity relationship optimization of novel small molecules directed toward different nuclear receptors.
Dr. Coats earned his Ph.D. degree in organic chemistry from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia followed by postdoctoral training at Yale University. Dr. Coats has co-authored more than sixty-five research publications in peer reviewed journals, and he is a co-inventor on more than forty-five issued or pending patents.
About OncoSpherix:
OncoSpherix, Inc., based in Atlanta, GA, is a pre-clinical stage oncology drug development company that is advancing a proprietary platform of first-in-class small molecule therapeutics that are designed to improve the quality of life and survival for people with many forms of cancer by targeting a common feature of solid tumors: the activation of hypoxia inducible factor-1 (HIF-1). Nearly all solid cancers grow faster than their blood supplies, leading to regions of low oxygen in the tumors and HIF activation. The HIFs in turn induce the expression of over 100 genes that help tumor cells survive and spread. OncoSpherix has several classes of small molecules that block activation of HIF-1 through novel mechanisms. OncoSpherix’s lead clinical candidate has been shown in mouse models to reduce primary tumor growth, inhibit metastasis, and prolong survival in many types of cancer (glioblastoma, pancreatic cancer, uveal melanoma, lung cancer, breast cancer). OncoSpherix intends to advance its lead candidate in one or more of these indications, in combination with agents that show therapeutic synergy while being well-tolerated.as part of the combination.
Company Contact:
Allan Valmonte
VP of Business Operations
valmonte@oncospherix.com
Source: OncoSpherix, Inc.