Syros Announces Appointment of Michael W. Bonney to Its Board of Directors

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., JUNE 14, 2018--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Syros Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: SYRS), a biopharmaceutical company pioneering the development of medicines to control the expression of genes, today announced the appointment of Michael W. Bonney to the Company’s Board of Directors. Mr. Bonney brings extensive strategic, operational, commercial and leadership experience in the biotechnology industry.

“Mike is a highly regarded and accomplished leader with a proven record of building successful commercial enterprises based on a strong strategic vision, operational excellence and a passion for bringing important therapies to market for patients,” said Nancy Simonian, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Syros. “His experience and insights will be invaluable to Syros as we work to achieve our vision of becoming a fully integrated biopharmaceutical company with medicines that provide a profound benefit for patients and create significant value for investors. We are thrilled to welcome Mike to our board.”

Mr. Bonney is currently chief executive officer and chair of the board of Kaleido Biosciences, a privately held, clinical-stage biotechnology company. Previously, Mr. Bonney was chief executive officer and director of Cubist Pharmaceuticals from 2003 until 2014. Under his leadership, Cubist grew into a leading antibiotic company and was acquired by Merck in early 2015 for $9.5 billion. Prior to Cubist, Mr. Bonney was vice president of sales and marketing at Biogen, where he built the company’s commercial infrastructure for the launch of its first product. Before joining Biogen, he spent 11 years at Zeneca Pharmaceuticals in a range of commercial, operating and strategic roles, including National Business Director.

Mr. Bonney chairs the boards of Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and Magenta Therapeutics and serves on the boards of Celgene Corporation and Sarepta Therapeutics. He is chair of the board of trustees of Bates College and a member of the board of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research. Mr. Bonney was a regional winner and national finalist in 2013 in the life science segment of Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year and was one of six executives nationwide named as Marketwatch’s CEO of the Year in 2011. He received his undergraduate degree in Economics from Bates College.

“With its exceptional people, pioneering science, rich pipeline of clinical- and early-stage programs backed by a productive product engine, I see all the makings of a great company in Syros,” said Mr. Bonney. “I look forward to working with the board and the management team to continue to build the company as it advances its clinical-stage programs closer to market and works to fulfill its mission of transforming patients’ lives through the creation of novel gene control medicines.”

Syros also announced today that Robert Nelson and Sanj K. Patel have stepped down from the Company’s board of directors.

“On behalf of our board of directors and management team, I want to thank both Bob and Sanj for their years of service to Syros,” Dr. Simonian said. “Their combined experience in founding, financing and building successful young biotech companies has contributed significantly to our evolution as a company, and we are grateful for their thoughtful guidance and support over the years.”

About Syros Pharmaceuticals
Syros is pioneering the understanding of the non-coding region of the genome to advance a new wave of medicines that control expression of genes. Syros has built a proprietary platform that is designed to systematically and efficiently analyze this unexploited region of DNA in human disease tissue to identify and drug novel targets linked to genomically defined patient populations. Because gene expression is fundamental to the function of all cells, Syros’ gene control platform has broad potential to create medicines that achieve profound and durable benefit across a range of diseases. Syros is currently focused on cancer and monogenic diseases and is advancing a growing pipeline of gene control medicines. Syros’ lead drug candidates are SY-1425, a selective RARα agonist in a Phase 2 clinical trial for genomically defined subsets of patients with acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome, and SY-1365, a selective CDK7 inhibitor in a Phase 1 clinical trial for patients with advanced solid tumors. Led by a team with deep experience in drug discovery, development and commercialization, Syros is located in Cambridge, Mass.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including without limitation statements regarding the Company’s ability to achieve its pipeline and company-building goals; and the benefits of Syros’ gene control platform. The words ‘‘anticipate,’’ ‘‘believe,’’ ‘‘continue,’’ ‘‘could,’’ ‘‘estimate,’’ ‘‘expect,’’ ‘‘intend,’’ ‘‘may,’’ ‘‘plan,’’ ‘‘potential,’’ ‘‘predict,’’ ‘‘project,’’ ‘‘target,’’ ‘‘should,’’ ‘‘would,’’ and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in these forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including Syros’ ability to: advance the development of its programs, including SY-1425 and SY-1365, under the timelines it projects in current and future clinical trials; demonstrate in any current and future clinical trials the requisite safety, efficacy and combinability of its drug candidates; replicate scientific and non-clinical data in clinical trials; successfully develop a companion diagnostic test to identify patients with the RARA and IRF8 biomarkers; obtain and maintain patent protection for its drug candidates and the freedom to operate under third party intellectual property; obtain and maintain necessary regulatory approvals; identify, enter into and maintain collaboration agreements with third parties, including its ability to perform under the collaboration agreement with Incyte; manage competition; manage expenses; raise the substantial additional capital needed to achieve its business objectives; attract and retain qualified personnel; and successfully execute on its business strategies; risks described under the caption “Risk Factors” in Syros’ Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017, as updated in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2018, each of which is on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission; and risks described in other filings that Syros makes with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the future. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof, and Syros expressly disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise.

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