Miami, FL, and Basking Ridge, NJ  -- March 23, 2021 -- The Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Foundation and DevPro Biopharma LLC, a clinical research and development company, announced that the two organizations have entered into a strategic alliance to develop more effective treatments for people with chronic lung conditions and get them to patients sooner.

The partnership aims to identify potential therapies for COPD and related lung conditions and to accelerate their development and regulatory approval. This alliance leverages DevPro Biopharma’s expertise in the design and implementation of expedient clinical programs and the COPD Foundation’s diverse patient and caregiver community and its network of COPD360Net experts.

"The COPD Foundation is home to many of the world’s leading experts in chronic lung conditions. Now, through their new COPD360Net initiative, they are poised to become leaders in the development of new therapeutics,” explained Colin Reisner, MD, DevPro Biopharma's co-founder and CEO. “By joining forces, DevPro Biopharma will direct its expertise to the development of clinical programs to be conducted within the COPD Foundation’s network. We are confident that through this alliance we will have a meaningful impact on patient communities worldwide.”

"Patients are desperate for additional treatment options, especially those that will prevent disease progression" says COPD Foundation’s President and Chief Scientific Officer Ruth Tal-Singer, PhD. "This strategic alliance with DevPro Biopharma helps us build upon our improved understanding of the needs of patients across the spectrum of COPD and related lung conditions. With this partnership, we aim to deliver on our mission of ensuring the rapid approval of innovative, impactful and affordable treatment options for our community."

DevPro Biopharma’s executive team has a proven track record of developing respiratory products, including inhaled medicines, leading them from concept to global approval. The team uses its expertise and technical know-how in clinical development to accelerate global development at optimized costs with shorter timelines to approval.

The COPD Foundation is the premier nonprofit organization dedicated to patients with COPD and related lung conditions. It provides a wide range of services to these patients and their caregivers, including its work to facilitate the discovery and development of new treatments. Its extensive resources include a network of scientific, clinical, psychosocial and health economics experts, and accredited clinical centers.

About Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

COPD, a chronic debilitating respiratory condition that makes it difficult to breathe, affects more than 320 million people globally. COPD is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States and the

third leading cause of death worldwide. Costs associated with treating COPD in the United States are nearly $50 billion a year. Despite its impact on lives and the economy, research and development of new therapeutic assets are vastly under-resourced. Though treatments do exist to help manage COPD's effects, the most recent regulatory approval for a new class of medication for COPD was in 2011.

About DevPro Biopharma

DevPro Biopharma LLC is a fully integrated clinical development company with the mission to design, develop, and deliver molecules into medicines. DevPro Biopharma’s capabilities span the life of clinical development from study design through product submission and approval. For more information, visit www.devprobiopharma.com or contact info@devprobiopharma.com.

About the COPD Foundation and COPD360Net

The COPD Foundation is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization founded in 2004, with a mission to support individuals living with COPD and related lung conditions such as bronchiectasis and their caregivers through community support, educational resources and active participation in clinical research. Through its COPD360Net initiative that recently launched in 2020, the COPD Foundation aims to speed innovations that will make treatment more effective and affordable and ultimately will prevent and/or stop progression of this devastating disease. For more information, please visit https://www.copdfoundation.org/.

The COPD360Net’s mission is to support the development and adoption of novel digital health tools and therapeutics that treat COPD, prevent progression, and improve lives of individuals with COPD and related chronic lung diseases at all stages of disease. This network consists of the core COPD Foundation accredited care centers; experts in COPD and related lung diseases; relevant subject matter experts, including primary care physicians; clinical trial designers; health economists and psychosocial experts, all working together to devise creative ways to support patients and their families in every aspect of their lives. COPD360Net is governed by a steering committee that includes clinical lead experts from participating centers, key content specialists and both patient and caregiver representatives.