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Dicerna™ Hires Industry Veterans to Lead Regulatory Affairs and Patient Advocacy

June 13, 2019 Off By BusinessWire

— Steven Kates, Ph.D., Joins Company as Vice President, Regulatory
Affairs —

— David Caponera Appointed Head of Patient Advocacy and Patient
Services —

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Dicerna™
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: DRNA) (the “Company” or “Dicerna”), a
leading developer of investigational ribonucleic acid interference
(RNAi) therapeutics, today announced the appointment of Steven A. Kates,
Ph.D., as vice president, regulatory affairs, and of David J. Caponera
as head of patient advocacy and patient services.

“We are thrilled to have Steve Kates and Dave Caponera join Dicerna, as
our steady progress in clinical development underscores the need to
bolster our capabilities in regulatory affairs and patient advocacy,”
said Douglas M. Fambrough, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer
of Dicerna. “The infusion of such extraordinary talent to our executive
leadership team will help Dicerna meet the needs of underserved patient
communities as we continue to evolve into a fully integrated commercial
company.”

Dr. Kates has three decades of experience in the development and
regulation of human therapeutics and life science products. He joins
Dicerna from Takeda Pharmaceuticals, where, as director of regulatory
affairs, he forged a global regulatory alignment for vaccine projects in
various stages of development. He has also held leadership roles in
regulatory affairs at Lakewood-Amedex, Ischemix (formerly Ceremedix) and
Citius Pharmaceuticals, as well as scientific research positions at
Surface Logic, Consensus Pharmaceuticals and Millipore Corporation. A
part-time assistant professor of regulatory affairs for drugs, biologics
and medical devices at Northeastern University College of Professional
Studies, Dr. Kates has authored 24 reviews, 80 papers, eight patents,
and 23 abstracts and meeting contributions. He has also served on the
editorial board of Applied Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology,
and has edited numerous textbooks and manuscripts on medicinal
chemistry and solid-phase synthesis. Dr. Kates earned a B.S. in
Chemistry from Bates College and a Ph.D. in Synthetic Organic Chemistry
from Brandeis University.

Mr. Caponera has worked for nearly 25 years as a specialist in patient
advocacy and engagement, both within the pharmaceutical industry and as
an independent consultant. His industry experience includes four years
at Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, where, as Vice President, Patient
Engagement and Access Support, he developed a unique support program for
a rare disease patient community that had previously had limited access
to treatment and educational resources. Mr. Caponera has also held
senior positions in patient advocacy, reimbursement and access services
at Aegerion Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer, Amicus Therapeutics and Genzyme. A
licensed respiratory therapist, Mr. Caponera holds a B.S. in Biology
(Genetics) from Cornell University and an M.A. in Health Administration
from Duke University.

About Dicerna™ Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Dicerna™ Pharmaceuticals, Inc., is a biopharmaceutical company focused
on the discovery and development of innovative, subcutaneously delivered
RNAi-based therapeutics for the treatment of diseases involving the
liver, including rare diseases, chronic liver diseases, cardiovascular
diseases and viral infectious diseases. Dicerna is leveraging its
proprietary GalXC™ RNAi technology platform to build a broad pipeline in
these core therapeutic areas, focusing on target genes where connections
between target gene and diseases are well understood and documented.
Dicerna intends to discover, develop and commercialize novel
therapeutics either on its own or in collaboration with pharmaceutical
partners. Dicerna has strategic collaborations with Eli Lilly and
Company, Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Boehringer Ingelheim
International GmbH. For more information, please visit www.dicerna.com.

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes forward-looking statements. Such
forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or
implied in such statements. Applicable risks and uncertainties include
risks relating to Dicerna’s clinical and preclinical research and other
risks identified under the heading “Risk Factors” included in the
Company’s most recent Form 10-Q filing and in other future filings with
the SEC. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release
reflect Dicerna’s current views with respect to future events, and
Dicerna does not undertake and specifically disclaims any obligation to
update any forward-looking statements.

Dicerna™, GalXC™ and PHYOX™ are trademarks of Dicerna Pharmaceuticals,
Inc.