GENEVA, Nov. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Addex Therapeutics (SIX: ADXN) announced today the appointment of Roger G. Mills, M.D., to the newly created position of Chief Medical Officer.
Dr. Mills brings more than 25 years of biopharmaceutical industry experience at both global pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology companies, including Acadia Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer, Gilead Sciences, Abbott Laboratories and Wellcome, across a spectrum of disease areas. His extensive track record includes managing drug development programs from Investigational New Drug Application preparation through to post-marketing and OTC products, including NUPLAZID(TM) for the treatment of Parkinson's disease psychosis, as well as regulatory affairs and business development activities. Most recently, Dr. Mills was with Acadia Pharmaceuticals for nine years, serving as Executive Vice President, Development and Chief Medical Officer. In this role, he oversaw the largest ever international phase III program in Parkinson's disease psychosis, and led the Company's New Drug Application submission to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for NUPLAZID, which was subsequently approved and remains the first and only medication approved by the FDA in this indication.
"We are delighted to welcome Roger to the Addex team, he brings a unique blend of drug development expertise, commercial experience and US public biotechnology company operations knowledge," said Tim Dyer, CEO of Addex. "Roger's experience in helping to successfully and significantly grow Acadia will be invaluable to Addex as we continue to execute on our strategy to develop dipraglurant for levodopa-induced dyskinesia associated with Parkinson's disease."
"I am excited to join Addex at such a critical juncture in the Company's corporate development," said Roger Mills. "Addex's development pipeline holds significant promise, and I look forward to applying my broad experience in the pharmaceutical industry and dealing with regulatory agencies to successfully advance the Company's product candidates."
Dr. Mills currently serves as a Visiting Professor at the Centre for Age Related Diseases, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London. He received his medical degree from Imperial College, Charing Cross Hospital Medical School, London, UK.
About Addex Therapeutics Addex Therapeutics ( www.addextherapeutics.com ) is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel, orally available, small molecule allosteric modulators for neurological disorders. Allosteric modulators are an emerging class of small molecule drugs which have the potential to be more specific and confer significant therapeutic advantages over conventional "orthosteric" small molecule or biological drugs. Addex's allosteric modulator drug discovery platform targets receptors and other proteins that are recognized as essential for therapeutic intervention - the Addex pipeline was generated from this pioneering allosteric modulator drug discovery platform. Addex's lead drug candidate, dipraglurant (mGluR5 negative allosteric modulator or NAM) has successfully completed a phase IIa POC in Parkinson's disease levodopa-induced dyskinesia (PD-LID), and is being prepared to enter registration trials for PD-LID with support from the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF). In parallel, dipraglurant's therapeutic use in dystonia is being investigated with support from the Dystonia Medical Research Foundation (DMRF). Addex's second clinical program, ADX71149 (mGluR2 positive allosteric modulator or PAM) is being developed in collaboration with Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc for epilepsy. In addition, ADX71441 (GABAB receptor PAM) has received regulatory approval to start phase I and is being investigated for its therapeutic use in Charcot-Marie-Tooth Type 1A disease (CMT1A), cocaine and alcohol use disorder and nicotine dependence. Discovery programs include mGluR4PAM for neurodegenerative diseases, mGluR7NAM for psychosomatic disorders and TrkBPAM for neurodegenerative disorders which are being advanced in collaboration with the Universities of Lausanne and Geneva under the Swiss CTI grant program; and mGluR3PAM which is being advanced in collaboration with Pierre Fabre Pharmaceuticals.
Press Contacts: Tim Dyer Chief Executive Officer Addex Therapeutics Telephone: +41 22 884 15 61 Email: PR@addextherapeutics.com
Disclaimer / Forward-looking statements: This communication does not constitute an offer or invitation to subscribe for or purchase any securities of Addex Therapeutics Ltd. This publication may contain certain forward-looking statements concerning the Company and its business. Such statements involve certain risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such statements. Readers should therefore not place undue reliance on these statements, particularly not in connection with any contract or investment decision. The Company disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
