MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., July 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALXA) announced today that Joseph L. Turner has been appointed to its Board of Directors. Mr. Turner was also appointed to serve as the Chair of the Board's Audit and Ethics Committee.
Mr. Turner has over 25 years of experience as a financial manager in the biotech and pharmaceutical industries, including 14 years as a Chief Financial Officer. Most recently, Mr. Turner served as Chief Financial Officer at Myogen, Inc., a publicly-traded biopharmaceutical company, which he joined in 1999 and served until it was acquired by Gilead Sciences in 2006. Previously, he was Chief Financial Officer at Centaur Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Vice President, Finance and Administration at Cortech, Inc. Mr. Turner began his career at Eli Lilly and Company, where he served for 12 years in various financial positions and functions.
Mr. Turner currently serves on the Board of Directors and Audit Committee of QLT Inc., a publicly-traded pharmaceutical company, Sequel Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately-held biotechnology company, and Kythera Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately-held pharmaceutical company. Since 2009, Mr. Turner has also served on the Board of Managers of Swarthmore College and in June 2010, he was appointed to its Finance Committee, Academic Affairs Committee and Student Affairs Committee. Previously, Mr. Turner served on the Board and Audit Committee of SGX Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a publicly-traded pharmaceutical company, and on the Board and as Chair of the Audit Committee of NovaCardia, Inc., a privately-held biotechnology company, until the sales of these companies in 2008 and 2007, respectively.
Mr. Turner has an M.B.A. from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, an M.A. in Molecular Biology from University of Colorado, and a B.A. in Chemistry from Swarthmore College.
"We are very pleased to welcome Joe to our Board of Directors," said Thomas B. King, President and CEO of Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc. "Joe brings a wealth of experience and expertise to our Board and we look forward to his contributions to Alexza as we move into the next stage of Alexza's development with the commercialization of our lead program, AZ-004 (Staccato loxapine)."
About Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Alexza Pharmaceuticals is a pharmaceutical company focused on the research, development and commercialization of novel, proprietary products for the acute treatment of central nervous system conditions. Alexza's technology, the Staccato® system, vaporizes unformulated drug to form a condensation aerosol that, when inhaled, allows for rapid systemic drug delivery through deep lung inhalation. The drug is quickly absorbed through the lungs into the bloodstream, providing speed of therapeutic onset that is comparable to intravenous administration, but with greater ease, patient comfort and convenience. (Click here to see an animation of how the Staccato system works.)
AZ-004 (Staccato loxapine) is Alexza's lead program, which is being developed for the rapid treatment of agitation in schizophrenic or bipolar disorder patients. Alexza has completed and announced positive results from both of its AZ-004 Phase 3 clinical trials, submitted a New Drug Application in December 2009, and has a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) goal date of October 11, 2010. In February 2010, Alexza established a partnership with Biovail Laboratories International SRL, a subsidiary of Biovail Corporation, to develop and commercialize AZ-004 in the U.S. and Canada. For more information about Alexza, the Staccato technology or the Company's development programs, please visit www.alexza.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
Any statement describing the Company's expectations or beliefs is a forward-looking statement, as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and should be considered an at-risk statement. Such statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, particularly those inherent in the process of developing and commercializing drugs. The Company's forward-looking statements also involve assumptions that, if they prove incorrect, would cause its results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These and other risks concerning Alexza's business are described in additional detail in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009, and the Company's other Periodic and Current Reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are made as of this date, and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
SOURCE Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc.