Kinarus Therapeutics to hold webinar on a new approach to treating COVID-19

• KIN001 has synergistic antiviral, anti-inflammatory activity, and anti-fibrotic mechanisms
• Phase 2 trials of KIN001 in hospitalized and ambulatory COVID-19 patients ongoing
• Interim data from Phase 2 study in hospitalized COVID-19 patients expected end of Q3
• Webinar on Aug 24 starts at 2:00 pm CET (8:00 am ET)

Basel, Switzerland, 22 August 2022 -- Kinarus Therapeutics Holding AG (SIX: KNRS) ("Kinarus”), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics to treat viral, respiratory, and ophthalmic diseases, today announced it will host a virtual event on the use of KIN001 for the treatment of COVID-19 on Wednesday, August 24 at 2:00 pm CET.

The webinar will feature a presentation by Dr. Thierry Fumeaux M.D., MBA, Chief Medical Officer of Kinarus and former Chairman of the Swiss National COVID-19 Scientific Task Force mandated by the Federal Council. There will be an opportunity for questions following the presentation.

"We look forward to showing why we think KIN001, an orally available small molecule therapeutic candidate, whose synergistic mechanisms of action make it an exciting potential add-on therapy to potentially reduce the severity and duration of COVID-19 infection in patients at all stages of the disease,” said Dr. Alexander Bausch, CEO of Kinarus. "At a molecular level KIN001 does not target the SARS-CoV-2 virus directly; it works by depriving the SARS-CoV-2 virus access to critical human cellular proteins that it requires to replicate in the human body; simultaneously, it exerts anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic effects to treat symptoms of the infection. Therefore, we believe its efficacy may be similar against all variants – as we have shown for current variants in preclinical studies – unhampered by the virus’ constant mutations, which are allowing SARS-CoV-2 to escape currently available therapeutic interventions.”

KIN001 is a proprietary novel combination of two active pharmaceutical ingredients that have demonstrated synergistic antiviral and anti-inflammatory activity, as well as ability to reduce tissue fibrosis in preclinical studies. Kinarus expects interim data from its first Phase 2 clinical trial of KIN001 to treat hospitalized COVID-19 patients ("KINETIC”) to be available late in Q3 2022. A second Phase 2 trial ("KINFAST”), a multicenter placebo-controlled study evaluating KIN001 in mild or moderate COVID-19 patients in an outpatient setting, was initiated in August.

In contrast to other antivirals and monoclonal antibody therapies, which target specific parts of SARS-CoV-2 directly, KIN001 targets human host cell pathways required for SARS-CoV-2 viral replication. Because it does not target the virus directly, the strategy employed by KIN001 also reduces potential for emerging variants that can escape this therapeutic intervention. Kinarus and its collaborators recently published data in the peer-reviewed International Journal of Molecular Sciences demonstrating KIN001’s strong antiviral efficacy and equal potency against the original SARS-CoV-2 strain and variants of concern (VOC), including both delta and omicron.

To register for the webinar, please click here (or go to https://bit.ly/KinarusWebinar082022).

KIN001 is a patented combination of pamapimod, a highly selective investigational small molecule inhibitor of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK), and pioglitazone, a marketed drug for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Several p38 MAPK inhibitors were studied by the pharmaceutical industry and largely abandoned after promising but only transient efficacy was observed. Kinarus discovered through its own research that the combination of pamapimod with pioglitazone (i.e., KIN001) produced synergistic efficacy and increased the durability of pamapimod’s effects in preclinical models representing several disease indications. KIN001 enjoys broad patent protection in the US, EU, China, and other countries through at least 2037.

Kinarus Therapeutics Holding AG (www.kinarus.com) was founded in 2017 by experienced pharmaceutical executives in Basel, Switzerland. The Kinarus team utilizes its knowledge and drug development competencies to in-license and develop mid-stage clinical assets in which they have identified an increased probability of clinical and regulatory success and a rapid path to market. Kinarus possesses the exclusive worldwide license to pamapimod, covering all indications, and has patented KIN001, its novel mechanism in combination with pioglitazone.

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