AVANIR Pharmaceuticals Appoints New Chief Executive Officer.ALISO VIEJO, Calif. -- AVANIR Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on :AVNR AVNR Atrioventricular Nodal Reentry ) today announced that Keith A. Katkin has been appointed President and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. and elected as a member of the board of directors. Mr. Katkin has replaced Eric K. Brandt, who resigned as President and CEO effective as of March 12, 2007. Mr. Katkin joined Avanir in July of 2005 as Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing and has served as a member of Avanir's Executive Management Team. Prior to joining Avanir, Mr. Katkin served as the Vice President, Commercial Development for Peninsula Pharmaceuticals, playing a key role in the management of the company. Additionally, Mr. Katkin's employment experience includes leadership roles at InterMune, Amgen and Abbott Laboratories. "The Board is pleased to announce Keith's appointment as President and CEO," said Craig Wheeler, a member of Avanir's board of directors. "Since arriving at Avanir, Keith has been deeply involved across the business. He led the build out of a fully integrated commercial organization, including the acquisition and integration of Alamo Pharmaceuticals, as the company prepared for the potential launch of Zenvia. His contributions to the company have been meaningful, and the board anticipates that Keith will continue to show his considerable leadership skills as he navigates the company toward the anticipated eventual approval of Zenvia for IEED IEED Involuntary Emotional Expression Disorder and minimizes operating expenses during this time." "I want to thank Eric for his past contributions and anticipated support for the Company in the transition," said Mr. Katkin. About Zenvia Zenvia is a combination of two well-characterized compounds, the active ingredient dextromethorphan, and the enzyme inhibitor quinidine quinidine (kwĭn`ĭdēn'), heart muscle relaxant used to maintain regular heart rhythm patterns. It is an alkaloid chemically similar to quinine and, like quinine, occurs naturally in some species of cinchona trees. , which serves to increase the bioavailability bioavailability /bio·avail·a·bil·i·ty/ (bi?o-ah-val?ah-bil´i-te) the degree to which a drug or other substance becomes available to the target tissue after administration. bi·o·a·vail·a·bil·i·ty n. of dextromethorphan. The first-in-class drug candidate is believed to help regulate excitatory ex·ci·ta·tive or ex·ci·ta·to·ry adj. Causing or tending to cause excitation. Adj. 1. excitatory - (of drugs e.g. neurotransmission in two ways, through presynaptic presynaptic /pre·syn·ap·tic/ (-si-nap´tik) situated or occurring proximal to a synapse. pre·syn·ap·tic adj. Relating to the area on the proximal side of a synaptic gap. inhibition of glutamate glutamate /glu·ta·mate/ (gloo´tah-mat) a salt of glutamic acid; in biochemistry, the term is often used interchangeably with glutamic acid. glu·ta·mate n. 1. A salt of glutamic acid. release via sigma-1 receptor agonist activity, and through postsynaptic postsynaptic /post·sy·nap·tic/ (-si-nap´tik) distal to or occurring beyond a synapse. post·syn·ap·tic adj. Situated behind or occurring after a synapse. glutamate response modulation via uncompetitive, low-affinity NMDA antagonist activity. About AVANIR AVANIR Pharmaceuticals is focused on developing, acquiring and commercializing novel therapeutic products for the treatment of chronic diseases. AVANIR's products and product candidates address therapeutic markets that include the central nervous system, cardiovascular disorders, inflammation and infectious diseases. AVANIR currently markets FazaClo([R]), the only orally-disintegrating formulation of clozapine clozapine /clo·za·pine/ (klo´zah-pen) a sedative and antipsychotic agent; used in the treatment of schizophrenia. clo·za·pine n. for the management of severely ill schizophrenic patients who fail to respond adequately to standard schizophrenic drug treatments. FazaClo is also indicated for reducing the risk of suicidal behavior in patients with schizophrenic or schizoaffective disorder. For full prescribing information and important safety information regarding FazaClo, please visit www.fazaclo.com. Zenvia[TM], AVANIR's lead product candidate for the treatment of involuntary emotional expression disorder (IEED), is the subject of an approvable letter from the FDA FDA abbr. Food and Drug Administration FDA, n.pr See Food and Drug Administration. FDA, n.pr the abbreviation for the Food and Drug Administration. . Additionally, AVANIR has completed the patient recruitment in a Phase III clinical trial Noun 1. phase III clinical trial - a large clinical trial of a treatment or drug that in phase I and phase II has been shown to be efficacious with tolerable side effects; after successful conclusion of these clinical trials it will receive formal approval from the with Zenvia as a potential treatment for patients with painful diabetic neuropathy. AVANIR has active collaborations with two international pharmaceutical companies: Novartis International Pharmaceutical Ltd. for the treatment of inflammatory disease; and AstraZeneca for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. The Company's first commercialized product, abreva([R]), is marketed in North America by GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare and is the leading over-the-counter product for the treatment of cold sores. Further information about AVANIR can be found at www.avanir.com. Forward Looking Statement Statements in this press release that are not historical facts, including statements that are preceded by, followed by, or that include such words as "estimate," "intend," "anticipate," "believe," "plan," "goal," "expect," or similar statements, are forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the future results expressed or implied by such statements. There can be no assurance that the Company will receive FDA regulatory approval for Zenvia or that the additional development work for Zenvia will be completed in the time periods that are anticipated. Final review decisions made by the FDA and other regulatory agencies concerning are often unpredictable and outside the influence and control of the Company. Risks and uncertainties also include the risks set forth in Avanir's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and from time-to-time in other publicly available information regarding the Company. Copies of this information are available from Avanir upon request. Avanir disclaims any intent to update these forward-looking statements. To be included on AVANIR's e-mail alert list; click on the link below or visit AVANIR's website: http://www.b2i.us/irpass.asp?BzID=958&to=ea&s=0 |
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