SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 8, 2017--
Jaguar Health, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAGX) ("Jaguar"), a natural-products
pharmaceuticals company focused on developing and commercializing novel,
sustainably derived gastrointestinal products for both human
prescription use and animals on a global basis, announced today that it
has signed a non-binding term sheet to issue to Iliad Research and
Trading, L.P. (the "Investor") a secured convertible promissory note
(the "Note") in the aggregate principal amount of $1,375,000 for an
aggregate purchase price of $1,100,000. The Note will bear interest at
the rate of 8.0% per annum, with a fixed conversion price of
$0.52/share, and will be due nine months after its issue date.
Funding of the Note is subject to, among other things, the approval by
Jaguar shareholders of the aggregate number of shares issuable upon
conversion of the Note and a secured convertible promissory note (the
"Existing Note") issued by Jaguar to Chicago Venture Partners, L.P.
("CVP"), an affiliate of the Investor, in June 2017.
Jaguar plans to use the proceeds from the transaction primarily for
inventory build-up of Mytesi®, an FDA-approved,
first-in-class anti-secretory human prescription drug product of
Jaguar's wholly-owned subsidiary, Napo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Napo), and
for general corporate purposes.
"Jaguar's relationship with CVP dates back to June of this year, when,
prior to the merger of Jaguar Animal Health and Napo, Jaguar entered
into a separate securities purchase agreement with CVP," Lisa Conte,
Jaguar's president and CEO, stated. "We are pleased to continue working
with CVP as we have now entered and are expanding commercial efforts for
Mytesi®. Build-up of Mytesi® inventory will help
maximize support for 'all four legs of the stool'—our growing direct
salesforce, the multiple initiatives we have underway nationally to
expand awareness about Mytesi® among consumers, our medical
education initiatives, and the expansion of our clinician-focused
marketing and promotional activities beyond HIV physicians to the large
number of gastroenterologists who see significant numbers of HIV
patients—and all of these efforts are further supported by the broad
reimbursement coverage available for Mytesi®."
Launched by Napo in October 2016, Mytesi® is the only
antidiarrheal studied in and U.S. FDA-approved for the symptomatic
relief of noninfectious diarrhea in adults living with HIV/AIDS on
antiretroviral therapy (ART). Mytesi® is a prescription
treatment for diarrhea that works differently, by acting locally in the
GI tract to normalize the flow of water. Mytesi® does not
have drug-drug interactions with ART, does not affect GI motility, and
has side effects that are similar to placebo.
Jaguar estimates the potential U.S. market for Mytesi® to be
approximately $100 million in gross annual sales, and anticipates that
Mytesi® will generate approximately $7.0 million in revenue
by April 2018 for its current, FDA-approved specialty indication.
Under the terms of the term sheet, the Note, similar to the Existing
Note, will be secured by substantially all the veterinary assets of
Jaguar upon the earlier to occur of (i) the repayment in full of
Jaguar's existing indebtedness to Hercules Capital, Inc. ("Hercules"),
related to the loan and security agreement, dated August 18, 2015,
between Jaguar and Hercules, or (ii) the purchase by the Investor of
Jaguar's existing indebtedness to Hercules, in either case, upon the
same terms set forth in the security agreement dated as of June 29, 2017
between Jaguar and CVP.
About Mytesi®
Mytesi® (crofelemer) is an antidiarrheal indicated for the
symptomatic relief of noninfectious diarrhea in adult patients with
HIV/AIDS on antiretroviral therapy (ART). Mytesi® is not
indicated for the treatment of infectious diarrhea. Rule out infectious
etiologies of diarrhea before starting Mytesi®. If infectious
etiologies are not considered, there is a risk that patients with
infectious etiologies will not receive the appropriate therapy and their
disease may worsen. In clinical studies, the most common adverse
reactions occurring at a rate greater than placebo were upper
respiratory tract infection (5.7%), bronchitis (3.9%), cough (3.5%),
flatulence (3.1%), and increased bilirubin (3.1%).
More information and complete Prescribing Information are available at Mytesi.com.
Crofelemer, the active ingredient in Mytesi®, is a botanical
(plant-based) drug extracted and purified from the red bark sap of the
medicinal Croton lechleri tree in the Amazon rainforest. Napo has
established a sustainable harvesting program for crofelemer to ensure a
high degree of quality and ecological integrity.
About Jaguar Health, Inc.
Jaguar Health, Inc. is a natural-products pharmaceuticals company
focused on developing and commercializing novel, sustainably derived
gastrointestinal products for both human prescription use and animals on
a global basis. Our wholly-owned subsidiary, Napo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,
focuses on developing and commercializing proprietary human
gastrointestinal pharmaceuticals for the global marketplace from plants
used traditionally in rainforest areas. Our Mytesi®
(crofelemer) product is approved by the U.S. FDA for the symptomatic
relief of noninfectious diarrhea in adults with HIV/AIDS on
antiretroviral therapy. Mytesi® is in development for
multiple possible follow-on indications, including cancer
therapy-related diarrhea; orphan-drug indications for infants and
children with congenital diarrheal disorders and short bowel syndrome;
supportive care for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); irritable bowel
syndrome (IBS); and as a second-generation anti-secretory agent for use
in cholera patients. Canalevia™ is our lead animal
prescription drug candidate, intended for treatment of various forms of
diarrhea in dogs. Equilevia™ is Jaguar's non-prescription
product for total gut health in equine athletes. Canalevia™
and Equilevia™ contain ingredients isolated and purified from
the Croton lechleri tree, which is sustainably harvested. Neonorm™
Calf and Neonorm™ Foal are Jaguar's lead non-prescription
animal products. Mytesi®, Canalevia™, Equilevia™
and Neonorm™ are distinct products that act at the same last
step in a physiological pathway generally present in mammals.
For more information about Jaguar, please visit jaguar.health.
For more information about Napo, visit napopharma.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release constitute "forward-looking
statements." These include statements regarding Jaguar's intention to
issue a secured convertible promissory note to the Investor, Jaguar's
anticipated use of proceeds from the proposed note issuance, the
anticipated terms of the convertible promissory note, the expectation
that build-up of Mytesi® inventory will help maximize support
for Jaguar's growing direct salesforce, the multiple initiatives the
Company has underway nationally to expand awareness about Mytesi®
among consumers, Jaguar's medical education initiatives, and the
expansion of Jaguar's clinician-focused marketing and promotional
activities beyond HIV physicians to the large number of
gastroenterologists who see significant quantities of HIV patients,
Jaguar's estimate that the potential U.S. market for Mytesi®
is approximately $100 million in gross annual sales, the expectation
that Mytesi® will generate approximately $7.0 million in
revenue by April 2018 for its current, FDA-approved specialty
indication, and planned, potential follow-on indications for Mytesi®.
In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such
as "may," "will," "should," "expect," "plan," "aim," "anticipate,"
"could," "intend," "target," "project," "contemplate," "believe,"
"estimate," "predict," "potential" or "continue" or the negative of
these terms or other similar expressions. The forward-looking statements
in this release are only predictions. Jaguar has based these
forward-looking statements largely on its current expectations and
projections about future events. These forward-looking statements speak
only as of the date of this release and are subject to a number of
risks, uncertainties and assumptions, some of which cannot be predicted
or quantified and some of which are beyond Jaguar's control. Except as
required by applicable law, Jaguar does not plan to publicly update or
revise any forward-looking statements contained herein, whether as a
result of any new information, future events, changed circumstances or
otherwise.
Jaguar-JAGX
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171108005821/en/
Source: Jaguar Health, Inc.
KCSA Strategic Communications
Garth Russell, 212-896-1250
grussell@kcsa.com
