Alfred Sandrock, Jr., M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer of Biogen, Joins Flex Pharma’s Scientific Advisory Board

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Flex Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: FLKS), a biotechnology company that is developing innovative and proprietary treatments for exercise-associated muscle cramps, nocturnal leg cramps, and spasms associated with severe neuromuscular conditions, today announced that Alfred Sandrock, Jr., M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer of Biogen (NASDAQ: BIIB), has joined its Scientific Advisory Board.

“Given Dr. Sandrock’s distinguished track record of success in the development and approval of several major therapeutic advances in neurology, Al is a tremendous addition to our Scientific Advisory Board,” stated Rod MacKinnon, M.D., Nobel Laureate and Flex Pharma Co-Founder, Board member, and Co-Chair of the Company’s Scientific Advisory Board.

"Flex Pharma’s strategy of stimulating particular nerves by TRP channel activation has opened a potentially important, novel means of therapeutic neurostimulation, via topically acting ion channel agonists,” commented Dr. Sandrock. “I am excited to join this preeminent group of scientific luminaries on Flex Pharma’s Scientific Advisory Board.”

Alfred Sandrock, Jr., M.D., Ph.D., is Biogen’s Group Senior Vice President of Development Sciences and Chief Medical Officer. Since joining Biogen in 1998, Dr. Sandrock has held several senior executive positions, including Senior Vice President of Development Sciences, Senior Vice President of Neurology Research and Development, and Vice President of Clinical Development, Neurology. During his tenure at Biogen, Dr. Sandrock has been responsible for the clinical development and approval of Tysabri®, Plegridy®, Tecfidera®, Alprolix®, and Eloctate®.

Dr. Sandrock received his B.A. in human biology from Stanford University, an M.D. from Harvard Medical School, and a Ph.D. in neurobiology from Harvard University. He completed an internship in medicine, a residency and chief residency in neurology, and a clinical fellowship in Neuromuscular Disease and Clinical Neurophysiology (electromyography) at Massachusetts General Hospital.

“As faculty at Harvard Medical School, Rod and I enjoyed our interactions with Al as an M.D./Ph.D. student, and now look forward to working with him on Flex Pharma’s development efforts, which will be greatly enhanced by his development expertise in neurology,” remarked Bruce Bean, Ph.D., Flex Pharma Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the Company’s Scientific Advisory Board.

“With our shared experience as M.D./Ph.D. candidates at Harvard, I look forward to working closely with Al as we aspire to build a leading neuromuscular company," said CEO of Flex Pharma, Christoph Westphal, M.D., Ph.D.

Also on the Scientific Advisory Board of Flex Pharma are:

• Rod MacKinnon, M.D., Co-Founder and Chair, is an Investigator at Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Professor, Laboratory of Molecular Neurobiology and Biophysics at The Rockefeller University, member of the National Academy of Sciences and recipient of the 2003 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
• Bruce Bean, Ph.D., Co-Founder and Chair, is the Robert Winthrop Professor of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School and is a member of the National Academy of Sciences.
• David Julius, Ph.D., is a Professor and Chair, Department of Physiology, University of California, San Francisco and member of the National Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Julius has published several papers on the structure of TRPA1 and TRPV1 ion channels in Nature.
• Roger Tung, Ph.D., is scientific Founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Concert Pharmaceuticals, Inc., founding scientist and former Vice President of Drug Discovery of Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and a co-inventor of Lexiva® and Agenerase®.
• Christopher Walsh, Ph.D., is an emeritus professor from the Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at Harvard Medical School. He is currently a consulting professor, Department of Chemistry at Stanford University and an advisor to the ChEM-H center at Stanford. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Medicine.
• John Winkelman, M.D., Ph.D., is Chief of the Sleep Disorders Clinical Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Winkelman’s clinical research has included clinical trials in sleep-related movement disorders, particularly extensive involvement in the development of approved agents for restless legs syndrome.

About Flex Pharma

Flex Pharma, Inc. is a biotechnology company that is developing innovative and proprietary treatments for exercise-associated muscle cramps, nocturnal leg cramps, and spasms associated with severe neuromuscular conditions. In three randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled, cross-over studies, Flex Pharma's proprietary treatment has shown a statistically significant reduction in the intensity of muscle cramps in healthy normal volunteers.

Flex Pharma was founded by National Academy of Sciences members Rod MacKinnon, M.D. (2003 Nobel Laureate), and Bruce Bean, Ph.D., recognized leaders in the fields of ion channels and neurobiology, along with Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Christoph Westphal, M.D., Ph.D.

Follow Flex Pharma on twitter @flexphama and visit the Company’s web site (www.ItsTheNerve.com and www.flex-pharma.com) for updates of the Company’s pre-launch activities for its consumer product to prevent and treat exercise-associated muscle cramps.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150615005724/en/

Flex Pharma, Inc.
Elizabeth Woo, 617-874-1829
SVP, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications
[email protected]

Source: Flex Pharma, Inc.

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