WALTHAM, Mass., Dec. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical
Corporation (Nasdaq: IMUL) today announced the appointment of Dr. Joseph Marr,
M.D., currently Executive Vice President of Research and Development/Chief
Scientific Officer, to the additional position of acting President and Chief
Executive Officer. Dr. Marr succeeds Robert J. Gerety, following Dr. Gerety's
resignation, today, from the position of President and Chief Executive Officer
and Director of the company.
In addition, Richard N. Small, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
has accepted a position as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
at Immune Therapeutics Inc., a start-up biotechnology company in
Massachusetts. However, at the request of the Board of Directors, Rich Small
has postponed his departure to remain in his current position as Vice
President and Chief Financial Officer through a transition period.
"Dr. Marr has the confidence and support of the Board to lead ImmuLogic
toward commercialization of our products in development," said Malcolm Gefter,
Ph.D., Chairman of the Board. "Dr. Marr's academic and pharmaceutical
experience combined with his leadership and management skills qualify him to
move the company into its next phase of development."
Dr. Marr's career encompasses more than twenty five years of academic
medicine, basic and clinical research, and industry research and development
experience. Prior to joining ImmuLogic in July 1996 as Executive Vice
President of Research/Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Marr was Vice President,
Research and Development at Ribozyme Pharmaceuticals from 1993 to 1996. He
joined Ribozyme at the formative stage and played an integral part in building
the scientific and development programs and taking the company public. In
addition, he helped establish three corporate partnerships with pharmaceutical
firms during his tenure. From 1989 to 1993, Dr. Marr was Senior Vice
President, Discovery Research at Searle Research and Development where he
managed a group of 240 scientists. Dr. Marr also was a consultant with the
World Health Organization from 1982 to 1992 during which time he designed and
implemented certain late stage clinical trials for WHO. From 1970 to 1989,
Dr. Marr held academic positions including Vice Chairman, Department of
Medicine, Director Division of Infectious Diseases and Professor of Medicine
and Biochemistry. He received his MD from the Johns Hopkins University School
of Medicine.
Dr. Marr commented, "Our immediate focus is the completion of discussions
with the FDA regarding the development of the ALLERVAX(R) CAT product, to
complete the data analyses of the recently finished ragweed trial and report
these results in the first quarter of 1997, and to file an Investigational New
Drug (IND) application to begin clinical trials for our multiple sclerosis
therapeutic. In addition, a major goal is to choose the strategy by which to
commercialize our allergy therapeutics; discussions with potential commercial
partners continue at this time.
"Our longer vision calls for ImmuLogic to generate significant revenues
from the ALLERVAX CAT and ALLERVAX RAGWEED products and to advance multiple
product candidates from the allergy, autoimmune, and drugs of abuse programs
to later stage clinical development."
ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company,
located in Waltham, Massachusetts, with the primary goal of developing peptide
therapeutics to treat allergies and autoimmune diseases. The Company also is
developing a poison ivy/poison oak therapeutic and a vaccine to treat cocaine
abuse.
SOURCE ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corporation
back to top
CONTACT: Susan Primrose, Director of Investor Relations of ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corp., 617-466-6000
|