Opiant Pharmaceuticals To Host Key Opinion Leader Meeting on Medications for Addictions and Related Disorders

Key Opinion Leader Luncheon to Take Place in New York City on May 10

SANTA MONICA, Calif., May 03, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ("Opiant") (NASDAQ:OPNT), a specialty pharmaceutical company developing pharmacological treatments for addictions, will host a Key Opinion Leader (KOL) luncheon on Medications for Addictions and Related Disorders on Thursday, May 10 in New York City.

The event will feature presentations by KOLs Sandra Comer, PhD, Columbia University, Susan McElroy, MD, University of Cincinnati, and Stephanie O'Malley, PhD, Yale School of Medicine, who will discuss the current treatment landscape and unmet medical need for treating patients with substance use and eating disorders. The KOLs will be available to answer questions at the conclusion of the event.

Opiant Pharmaceuticals' management team will provide an update on opioid overdose treatments, including their NARCAN® Nasal Spray (naloxone HCI), which is FDA approved in the US and Canada for opioid overdose reversal, and OPNT003, Nasal Nalmefene, a long acting opioid overdose reversal product.  The company will also present an update of OPNT001, which is currently in a Phase II trial for the treatment of Bulimia Nervosa (BN), and OPNT002, nasal naltrexone, with Phase I data that may hold promise for the treatment of patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD).

Dr. Sandra Comer is Professor of Neurobiology in the Department of Psychiatry at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University, and Research Scientist VI at the New York State Psychiatric Institute. Dr. Comer’s research focus at Columbia University has been on the clinical development and testing of novel approaches to the treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD), including the influence of sex differences and hormonal influences on responses to pain and opioid medications, the role of inflammation on opioid-mediated effects, and the ability of sustained-release medications to alter the subjective and reinforcing effects of opioids. She currently directs a very active laboratory to evaluate medications to treat OUD, as well as combined opioid and alcohol use disorders. Dr. Comer is also evaluating the comparative abuse liability of several commonly prescribed pain medications using laboratory models of drug self-administration in humans. She served as a regular member of the National Institutes of Health Biobehavioral Regulation, Learning and Ethology (BRLE) study section and numerous ad hoc NIH grant review committees. For several years, Dr. Comer served as Program Chair of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence, the longest standing scholarly society in the United States that is devoted to issues surrounding substance use disorders. She was also President of CPDD and currently is serving as the Public Policy Officer for CPDD. Dr. Comer recently joined the Expert Advisory Panel on Drug Dependence for the World Health Organization and is the author or co-author of more than 140 papers, chapters, and books dealing with several aspects of substance abuse.

Dr. McElroy is the Chief Research Officer of the Lindner Center of HOPE and a Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. As Chief Research Officer she currently oversees multiple ongoing studies in mood, anxiety, eating and impulse control disorders, genetics and psychopharmacology. She has received funding for her research from National Institute of Mental Health, Agency for Healthcare quality, the Stanley Foundation, and industry. Dr. McElroy is internationally known for her research in bipolar disorder, eating disorders, obesity, impulse control disorders and pharmacology. She is the author of over 350 scientific papers in leading medical journals and was the 8th most cited scientist in the world published in the fields of psychiatry and psychology since 1996. She has also authored over 130 reviews and chapters in major psychiatric textbooks. Dr. McElroy is the editor of 4 scientific books and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. Dr. McElroy has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors including being recognized among the Best Mental Health Experts by Good Housekeeping Magazine; Best Doctors in America, a directory of the top one percent of physicians in the United States as rated by their peers; Top Doctors in Cincinnati by Cincinnati Magazine; Best Doctors in Dayton by the Dayton Business Courier; and, as one of America’s Top Psychiatrists, by the Consumer Research Council. Additionally, she was a recipient of the Phillip L. Isenberg Teaching Award for dedication and excellence in the education of residents, McLean Hospital and Harvard Medical School; the Golden Apple Award for excellence in teaching of residents, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine; and a co-recipient of the Gerald L. Klerman Young Investigator Award of the National Depressive and Manic Depressive Association.

Dr. O’Malley is a Professor and the Deputy Chair for Clinical Research in the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine. She is the Director of the Division of Substance Abuse Research in the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine. The major focus of her research is on the development of more effective treatments for substance use disorders, primarily alcohol and tobacco. Dr. O’Malley’s landmark study on the efficacy of naltrexone was pivotal to the approval of this medication by the Food and Drug Administration for use in the treatment of alcoholism in 1994. She has continued to study the efficacy of opiate antagonists and other pharmacotherapies using human laboratory paradigms and clinical trials. Dr. O’Malley was President of the Research Society on Alcoholism from 2001-2003. She received the Joel Elkes International Award for Exceptional Contributions to Psychopharmacology from the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, the Dan Anderson Research Award from the Hazelden Foundation, the Betty Ford Award from the Association for Medical Education and Research in Substance Abuse, and an American Psychological Association Presidential Citation for leadership and research in the field of addictions. She served on the National Advisory Council on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health from November 2002 – March 2007. She serves on several editorial boards, including JAMA Psychiatry.

This event is intended for institutional investors, sell-side analysts, investment bankers, and business development professionals only. Please RSVP in advance if you plan to attend, as space is limited.  For those who are unable to attend in person, a live webcast and replay of the event will be accessible here.

About Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Opiant Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical company developing pharmacological treatments for addictions. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), describes these disorders as chronic relapsing brain diseases which burden society at both the individual and community levels. With its innovative opioid antagonist nasal delivery technology, Opiant is positioned to become a leader in these treatment markets. Opiant's first product, NARCAN® Nasal Spray, is approved for marketing in the U.S. and Canada by its partner, Adapt Pharmaceuticals. For more information please visit: www.opiant.com.

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Dan Ferry
Managing Director
LifeSci Advisors, LLC
Daniel@lifesciadvisors.com
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