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Flex Pharma Announces Scientific Advisory Board Appointment and Management Change

SLRX | August 26, 2016

Flex Pharma Announces Scientific Advisory Board Appointment and Management Change

-- W. Larry Kenney, Ph.D., Penn State University Professor of Physiology and Kinesiology, Joins Scientific Advisory Board --

-- Kathie Lindemann, COO, Continues Leading Consumer; Marina Hahn Transitions to Advisor --

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Flex Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: FLKS) announced today that W. Larry Kenney, Ph.D., Professor of Physiology and Kinesiology at Penn State University, has joined the Company’s Scientific Advisory Board. In addition, the Company announced today that Marina Hahn has transitioned from President, Consumer to become an advisor to the Company. Ms. Lindemann, Chief Operating Officer (COO), will continue to lead the Company’s consumer business for which she assumed operational responsibility in May 2016 in anticipation of the Company’s launch of HOTSHOT™, the first scientifically proven product to prevent and treat exercise associated muscle cramps. Flex Pharma is a biotechnology company developing innovative and proprietary treatments for nocturnal leg cramps (NLC), spasms associated with severe neuromuscular conditions such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and exercise-associated muscle cramps (EAMC).

“Dr. Kenney is a recognized leader in the field of exercise physiology,” noted Bruce Bean, Ph.D., Harvard Medical School Professor of Neurophysiology, Flex Pharma Co-founder and Scientific Advisory Board Co-Chair. “Larry will add an important new perspective to the Flex Pharma Scientific Advisory Board as we advance our thinking about cramps and motor performance in healthy athletes.”

As the Marie Underhill Noll Chair in Human Performance and Professor of Physiology and Kinesiology at Penn State University, Dr. Kenney is focused on research involving human physiological responses and adaptations to exercise and extreme environments. He is lead author of Physiology of Sport and Exercise, a best-selling textbook now in its 6^th edition, and has published more than 200 journal articles and book chapters. Dr. Kenney served as President of the American College of Sports Medicine from 2003-2004. He serves on the American Council of Exercise Scientific Advisory Panel, Nike’s Science Advisory Board, and chaired the Gatorade® Sports Science Institute for several years. Dr. Kenney received his Ph.D. in Physiology from Penn State.

“We thank Marina for her great contributions that formed the creative vision for HOTSHOT^TM, a unique product and brand,” said Christoph Westphal, M.D., Ph.D., Chair and CEO of Flex Pharma. “We are pleased that we will have continued access to Marina’s expertise as the Company moves into this next phase of the rollout of HOTSHOT^TM.”

Kathie Lindemann joined Flex in August 2015 as COO. Prior to joining Flex Pharma, Ms. Lindemann served as COO at DAVIDsTEA Inc. Ms. Lindemann also spent 19 years at Starbucks where she held several leadership roles including Senior Vice President, Starbucks Foodservice, SVP US Business Operations, and SVP International Operations, Store Development and Global Business Systems.

About Flex Pharma

Flex Pharma, Inc. is a biotechnology company that is developing innovative and proprietary treatments for nocturnal leg cramps, cramps and spasms associated with severe neuromuscular conditions such as MS and ALS, and exercise-associated muscle cramps. Flex Pharma was founded by National Academy of Science members Rod MacKinnon, M.D. (2003 Nobel Laureate), and Bruce Bean, Ph.D., recognized leaders in the fields of ion channels and neurobiology, along with Chair and CEO Christoph Westphal, M.D., Ph.D.

Visit www.TeamHOTSHOT.com for updates and to learn more about HOTSHOT^TM, the Company’s consumer product which is scientifically proven to prevent and treat muscle cramps.

HOTSHOT^TM is a consumer product that is marketed to endurance athletes for exercise-associated muscle cramps. HOTSHOT^TM complements the Company’s drug development business and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Follow Flex Pharma (@flexpharma) and HOTSHOT^TM (@Team_HOTSHOT) on Twitter

Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding our intentions, beliefs, projections, outlook, analyses or current expectations concerning, among other things: the management of our consumer business and our plans to commercialize our consumer products. These forward-looking statements are based on management's expectations and assumptions as of the date of this press release and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation: our ability to commercialize our consumer products; anticipated positioning and product attributes of our consumer products; other matters that could affect the availability or commercial potential of our consumer product; the inherent uncertainties associated with intellectual property; and other factors discussed in greater detail under the heading "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 and subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). You are encouraged to read our filings with the SEC, available at www.sec.gov, for a discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties. Any forward-looking statements that we make in this press release speak only as of the date of this press release. We assume no obligation to update our forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this press release.