BARCELONA, Spain and CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Nov. 4, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Oryzon Genomics, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company leveraging epigenetics to develop therapies in oncology and neurodegenerative diseases, today announced the appointment of Mr. Antonio Fornieles, Ms. Isabel Aguilera and Mr. Ramon Adell as independent directors to the company's Board of Directors, effective November 3, 2015.
The addition of three independent directors, approved by shareholders, strengthens the board of Oryzon, as the company prepares to go public on the Spanish Continuous Market in Madrid. Mr. Antonio Fornieles, Ms. Isabel Aguilera and Mr. Ramon Adell have substantial expertise and will be valuable contributors to Oryzon's mission and anticipated needs.
Mr. Antonio Fornieles will act as Lead Director, Ms. Isabel Aguilera will act as Chairman of the Remuneration and Nomination Committee, and Mr. Ramon Adell will be chairing the Audit and Compliance Committee.
Carlos Buesa, Oryzon's Co-Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "We are privileged to have these three professionals join us and provide Oryzon with corporate governance and strategic, financial and operational guidance. Oryzon's Directors have a track record of helping create significant value for shareholders of fast growing companies in the biotech and healthcare industries. We look forward to working closely with Antonio, Isabel and Ramon as we continue to advance our clinical pipeline and increase our visibility with the investment community."
Mr. Antonio Fornieles brings to Oryzon over 30 years of audit experience. Mr. Fornieles has been Second Vice Chairman at Abengoa SA since January 2015 and also serves as its lead director. Previously as Global Chief Operating Officer at KPMG, Mr. Fornieles was responsible for the company-wide audit function at KPMG. Mr. Fornieles was a partner at KPMG since 1994. He is a lecturer in the faculty of economics and business studies at the University of Cádiz, and a regular speaker and lecturer about issues related to financial reporting, business management and corporate governance and ethics. He received a B.S in Economics and Business Studies from the Complutense University of Madrid and a Diploma in Senior Management in Business Management from the San Telmo Business School.
Ms. Isabel Aguilerais is currently a Non-Executive Director and adviser to various companies, such as Indra, Banco BMN, AEGON Spain and EGASA. Her professional career has mostly been related to the field of information technology. In the past, she has held executive positions in multinational companies such as Airtel, Olivetti, NH Hoteles and others. She has been CEO for DELL in South Europe, CEO for Google Inc. in Spain and Portugal and President for General Electric in Spain and Portugal. She holds a degree in Architecture and Urban Planning and a MBA from the IE Business School.
Mr. Ramon Adell serves as Professor of Financial Economics and Accounting at the University of Barcelona. Mr. Adell has been an Independent Director of Gas Natural SDG SA since 2010, chairman of its Audit Committee since 2012, and a member of its Strategic Committee since 2015. He was also a key member of the team that initially developed and implemented the financial derivatives market in the Spanish Stock Exchange. Mr. Adell has published a number of books and articles and is a regular speaker at conferences on business management. He holds a Ph.D in Economics and Business Administration and a B.A. in Law. Mr. Adell is also a Certified Public Accountant and Financial Analyst.
About Oryzon
Founded in 2000 in Barcelona, Spain, Oryzon is a privately held, clinical stage biopharmaceutical company considered as the European champion in Epigenetics. The company has one of the strongest portfolios in the field and a clinical asset already partnered with ROCHE. Oryzon's LSD1 program is currently covered by 19 patent families and has rendered one compound in clinical trials and another one is anticipated to enter clinical trials in early 2016. In addition, Oryzon has ongoing programs for developing inhibitors against other epigenetic targets. The company has also a strong technological platform for biomarker identification and performs biomarker and target validation for a variety of malignant and neurodegenerative diseases. Oryzon's strategy is to develop first in class compounds against novel epigenetic targets through Phase II clinical trials, at which point it is decided on a case-by-case basis to either keep the development in-house or to partner or out-license the compound for late stage development and commercialization. The company has offices in Barcelona and Cambridge, Massachusetts. For more information, visit www.oryzon.com .
US Contact: The Ruth Group Lee Roth/Tram Bui (646) 536-7012/7035 Spain: ATREVIA Ana Melgar/Patricia Cobo +34 91 564 07 25 The Company: Ms. Anna K Baran IR Director +44 (0) 752 1083 006
