Humanigen Appoints Chief Financial Officer

BRISBANE, Calif., Aug. 28, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Humanigen, Inc. (OTCQB:HGEN), a biopharmaceutical company focused on advancing medicines for patients with neglected and rare diseases, today announced it has appointed Greg Jester as its chief financial officer (CFO), effective September 5, 2017.

Mr. Jester brings more than two decades of financial, operational management and entrepreneurial experience in the life sciences industry. He will be responsible for further strengthening Humanigen’s financial foundation to facilitate the company’s next growth phase.

“We are delighted to welcome Greg to Humanigen. His energy and record of delivering results and building scalable financial organizations are a great fit as we continue our work with our product candidates,” said Cameron Durrant, MD, chairman and CEO. “I am confident Greg will bolster the Humanigen team’s ability to execute, to deliver on milestones and to create value for our stakeholders by advancing important medicines to patients with neglected and rare diseases.”

Most recently, Mr. Jester served as vice president, finance, for Tris Pharma. In addition to previously serving as interim controller for a $40 million private equity-owned generic pharmaceutical company and financial consultant for a commercial drug device company, Mr. Jester has held CFO roles at private and publicly-owned pharmaceutical companies, including Alvogen and Innovive Pharmaceuticals, and senior finance roles at Barr Pharmaceuticals, which was eventually acquired by Teva Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Jester holds a Bachelor of Science in business administration from the University of Richmond.

“I am excited to be joining Humanigen at this pivotal point in the company’s evolution,” said Mr. Jester. “I look forward to working with the Humanigen team and all our stakeholders to help realize the value within the company’s pipeline and innovative operating model in the neglected and rare disease space.”

Humanigen continues to anticipate key upcoming milestones and to work on corporate priorities, including:

• New Drug Application (NDA) submission for benznidazole in Chagas disease, a neglected tropical disease, to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the first quarter of 2018
• Submission for both rare pediatric designation and orphan drug designation for lenzilumab in juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML)
• Development of an interim analysis of the lenzilumab Phase 1 trial in chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML)

In just over a year, the company also has transformed how it operates and has rapidly achieved a number of important clinical development milestones.

In the benznidazole program in Chagas disease, the company has:

• Confirmed that benznidazole is eligible for review via the 505(b)(2) regulatory pathway as a potential treatment for Chagas disease per FDA-issued guidance
• Received guidance confirming eligibility for receipt of a priority review voucher if benznidazole becomes the first FDA-approved treatment for Chagas disease
• Opened an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the FDA
• Received FDA orphan drug designation

In the lenzilumab program, the company initiated an ongoing Phase 1 trial of lenzilumab in CMML, a rare disease with significant unmet need.

About Humanigen

Humanigen, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on advancing medicines for patients with neglected and rare diseases through innovative, accelerated business models. Lead compounds in the portfolio are benznidazole for the potential treatment of Chagas disease in the U.S., and the proprietary monoclonal antibodies, lenzilumab and ifabotuzumab. Lenzilumab has potential for treatment of various rare diseases, including hematologic cancers such as chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) and juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML). For more information, visit www.humanigen.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements that are intended to be subject to protection afforded by the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements reflect management's current knowledge, assumptions, judgment and expectations regarding future performance or events. Although management believes that the expectations reflected in such statements are reasonable, they give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct and you should be aware that actual events or results may differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Words such as "will," "expect," "intend," "plan," "potential," "possible," "goals," "accelerate," "continue," and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding our expectations as to the timing for submission of our NDA for benznidazole, our expectations for the JMML submissions and timing for the Phase 1 analysis in respect of lenzilumab’s potential usage for CMML, and our expectations for executing on the other key priorities and anticipated milestones described above. Forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, our lack of profitability and the need for additional capital to operate our business as a going concern; the uncertainties inherent in the development and launch of any new pharmaceutical product; the acceptability to FDA of a 505(b)(2) development pathway for approval of benznidazole using data drawn from previously conducted studies; the outcome of pending or future litigation; and the various risks and uncertainties described in the "Risk Factors" sections and elsewhere in the Company's periodic and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary notice. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. We undertake no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements made in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect new information or the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law.

CONTACT:

Investors:
Mike Cole
O: 949-259-4988
C: 949-444-1341
mike.cole@mzgroup.us

Media:
Lisa Guiterman
O: 301-217-9353
C: 202-330-3431
media@humanigen.com