Mast Therapeutics To Present At The Leerink Swann Rare Disease Roundtable On October 2

SAN DIEGO, Sept. 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mast Therapeutics, Inc. (NYSE MKT: MSTX) today announced that the Company's Chief Executive Officer, Brian M. Culley, will present at the Leerink Swann Rare Disease Roundtable, on Wednesday, October 2nd, 2013 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern time at Le Parker Meridien Hotel in New York City.

Interested parties can access a live audio webcast and slide presentation on the Mast Therapeutics web site at www.masttherapeutics.com. An archived presentation will be available on the web site for 30 days.

About Mast Therapeutics
Mast Therapeutics, Inc. is a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company headquartered in San Diego, California.  The Company is leveraging the MAST (Molecular Adhesion and Sealant Technology) platform, derived from over two decades of clinical, nonclinical and manufacturing experience with purified and non-purified poloxamers, to develop MST-188, its lead product candidate, for serious or life-threatening diseases with significant unmet needs.  MST-188 is a cytoprotective, hemorheologic, anti-inflammatory and anti-thrombotic agent that has potential utility in diseases or conditions characterized by microcirculatory insufficiency (endothelial dysfunction and/or impaired blood flow). 

The Company is enrolling subjects in EPIC, a pivotal phase 3 study of MST-188 in sickle cell disease.  The Company plans to initiate a phase 2 clinical study of MST-188 in acute limb ischemia, a complication of peripheral arterial disease, in early 2014.  More information can be found on the Company's web site at www.masttherapeutics.com.

Mast Therapeutics™ and the corporate logo are trademarks of Mast Therapeutics, Inc.

Forward Looking Statements
Mast Therapeutics cautions you that statements included in this press release that are not a description of historical facts are forward-looking statements that are based on the Company's current expectations and assumptions. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Company's development plans for MST-188 in acute limb ischemia, including the timing of initiation of the planned phase 2 study.  Among the factors that could cause or contribute to material differences between the Company's actual results and the expectations indicated by the forward-looking statements are risks and uncertainties that include, but are not limited to: delays in the commencement of clinical studies, including as a result of difficulties in obtaining regulatory agency agreement on clinical development plans or clinical study design, opening trial sites, enrolling study subjects and manufacturing sufficient quantities of clinical trial material; the potential for institutional review boards or the FDA or other regulatory agencies to require additional nonclinical or clinical studies prior to initiation of a planned clinical study; and other risks and uncertainties more fully described in the Company's press releases and periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission are available at www.sec.gov.

You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date when made. Mast Therapeutics does not intend to revise or update any forward-looking statement set forth in this press release to reflect events or circumstances arising after the date hereof, except as may be required by law.

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SOURCE Mast Therapeutics, Inc.

Ioana C. Hone (ir@mastthera.com), 858-552-0866 Ext. 303