South San Francisco – January 30, 2013 – MyoKardia, Inc, a company focused on developing innovative therapeutics to treat genetic cardiovascular disease, today announced the appointment of Jonathan C. Fox, M.D., Ph.D., as Chief Medical Officer. In his role, Dr. Fox will be responsible for the clinical development and regulatory strategy for MyoKardia's pipeline of novel, small molecule therapeutics focused on treatments for genetically determined hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM).
"Jonathan's efforts will focus not only on bench-to-bedside translation of our drug discovery programs, but also to work with the leading physicians and patient advocacy groups to more fully characterize the breadth and severity of the mutations which underlie this disease," said Charles Homcy, M.D., Interim Chief Executive Officer of MyoKardia and Venture Partner at Third Rock Ventures. "We look forward to working together to develop breakthrough treatments for patients with genetic heart disease."
Dr. Fox brings to MyoKardia working knowledge across all phases of clinical development, from clinical pharmacology to large cardiovascular outcomes trials. In his previous roles with top-tier global biopharmaceutical companies, Dr. Fox led clinical research teams that secured multiple cardiometabolic drug product approvals. Before joining MyoKardia, he served as Vice President of Clinical Development at AstraZeneca; Senior Director, Clinical Cardiovascular Research at Merck; and Director of Clinical Pharmacology at SmithKline Beecham. Dr. Fox has been a Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine for the past two decades, and serves as a longstanding Trustee of the Lankenau Institute for Medical Research in Wynnewood, PA. Dr. Fox also served a four-year term as the Industry Representative to the Food and Drug Administration's Cardiovascular and Renal Drug Products Advisory Committee (CRDAC). Dr. Fox received his B.A., Ph.D., and M.D. degrees from the University of Chicago, and completed postgraduate training in internal medicine and cardiology at Duke University.
"MyoKardia's genetically targeted approach and cutting-edge platform has the potential to fundamentally change the lives of patients with HCM and DCM. By translating the groundbreaking science of the founding investigators into effective, disease modifying treatments, we may ultimately transform the future of treating cardiovascular disease," said Dr. Fox. "I am delighted to be joining the MyoKardia team of world-class founders and proven industry executives, with all of us working together to target genetic heart disease at its root cause and revolutionize the treatment of genetic cardiomyopathies."
About MyoKardia, Inc.
MyoKardia is dedicated to revolutionizing the treatment of genetic cardiovascular disease. The company's proprietary platform combines recent breakthroughs in muscle biology with leading-edge cardiovascular disease genetics. This personalized, genetically targeted approach focuses on the underlying cause of disease and has the potential to drastically improve the treatment of cardiomyopathies, and ultimately a broader spectrum of cardiovascular disease, including heart failure. Founded by world leaders in muscle biology and cardiovascular disease genetics, MyoKardia was launched in 2012 with funding from leading life sciences investor, Third Rock Ventures. For more information, please visit www.myokardia.com.