Cerecor Inc. Announces Key Management Additions
10/18/2012 10:12:05 AM
BALTIMORE, MD--(October 17, 2012) - Cerecor Inc. today announced the appointment of James Vornov, M.D. PhD, and John Kaiser to its management team. Dr. Vornov is joining Cerecor as Senior Vice President, Clinical Development and Regulatory Affairs, and Mr. Kaiser as Vice President of Commercialization and Business Development. Dr. Vornov will be responsible for leading Cerecor's clinical development strategy and program execution from human proof of concept through to product approval and commercialization. Mr. Kaiser will be responsible for all commercial and business development efforts conducted by the Company.
"We are very pleased to announce that Mr. Kaiser and Dr. Vornov are joining Cerecor in these critical leadership roles. Both are accomplished executives with extensive experience in their respective areas of operation, and bring invaluable experience in both large and small biomedical organizations to the table," said Blake Paterson, M.D., Cerecor's co-founder and Chief Executive Officer. "Their leadership in our effort to develop and position FP01 for market entry in our upcoming Phase II-III programs will be essential for the success of Cerecor in the coming years," added Dr. Paterson.
"I'm excited to join the accomplished team that has already been successful at Cerecor and build the capabilities to rapidly move the portfolio through development to market," said Dr. Vornov. "It's an exciting time to be joining Cerecor. The company is developing and will commercialize FP01 to be the first truly innovative treatment for acute and chronic cough in more than 50 years. In addition, we have the 'green light' to expand our portfolio into other CNS areas of high unmet need through acquisition and I am looking forward to playing a pivotal role in both of these efforts," said Mr. Kaiser.
Dr. Vornov is an internationally known expert in drug development and clinician-scientist with over 20 years of academic and drug development experience. He has particular expertise in reducing risk and creating market value across the development process through focused, innovative drug approaches to trial design and conduct. Prior to joining Cerecor, Dr. Vornov served as Global Therapeutic Area Leader, CNS at PAREXEL International, a leading global Contract Research Organization. He previously headed Experimental Medicine at MGI Pharma following its merger with Guilford Pharmaceuticals.
Mr. Kaiser is co-founder & CEO of Denysias Bioscience in San Diego, where he led funding and licensing efforts focused on opportunities in CNS. Prior to Denysias, he served as Vice President of Commercial & Business Development at ACADIA Pharmaceuticals in San Diego with responsibilities for strategic marketing and licensing efforts consummating a North American partnership with Biovail, representing $395 million in development and commercial milestones. Prior to ACADIA, Mr. Kaiser held numerous positions of increasing responsibilities at Eli Lilly & Company that spanned more than 25 years. At Lilly, Mr. Kaiser held various assignments in sales, marketing and general management in the US and Europe (including UK and the Netherlands). For nearly 20 years Mr. Kaiser's experiences were concentrated within Neuroscience.
About Cerecor: Cerecor Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of prescription pharmaceuticals whose primary activity is in the human nervous system. We are a Delaware corporation, based in Baltimore and organized in April 2011 in partnership with various laboratories at Johns Hopkins Medical Institute. Cerecor is focused on translational medicine -- the accelerated transfer of technology from the academic laboratory to early human trials, with the mission of commercializing therapeutics that make a difference.
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