PhytoMedical Announces the Appointment of Dr. James F. Lynch as President and CEO
Business and Drug Development Industry Executive, James F. Lynch, PhD, MBA, joins PhytoMedical as President and Chief Executive Officer
PRINCETON, N.J., Mar 22, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- PhytoMedical Technologies, Inc. today announced that Dr. James F. Lynch, formerly a member of the Company's Scientific Advisory Board, has been appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of PhytoMedical, effective March 15, 2010. Mr. Greg Wujek, PhytoMedical's outgoing President and CEO, continues to serve as Director on the Company's Board.
"I'm proud to have Dr. Lynch take leadership of our Company, and especially look forward to capitalizing on his industry experience, which spans more than 20 years and ranges from the development and launch of new compounds to successfully consummating deals with big pharma," stated outgoing President & CEO, Mr. Greg Wujek, Director of PhytoMedical Technologies, Inc. "Especially helpful to advancing our pipeline and creating an international presence for our Company is Dr. Lynch's unique blend of worldwide pharmaceutical product and business development expertise, and scientific know-how."
Dr. Lynch holds a Doctoral degree in Inorganic Chemistry and a Masters degree in Business Administration, and brings over two decades of industry experience across a variety of strategic, operational and entrepreneurial roles within large pharma, private and public specialty pharmaceutical companies, and international consulting.
"I'm excited to join PhytoMedical at this time, and eager to leverage my many years of technical and business experience in order to not only advance our uniquely designed, lead anti-cancer compound, but to establish value-added, strategic partnerships around the world," commented Dr. Lynch, newly-appointed President & CEO of PhytoMedical.
Dr. James F. Lynch, PhD, MBA: Industry Expertise & Scientific Know-How
Dr. Lynch earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry at Siena College, and completed his Doctoral degree in Inorganic Chemistry at Seton Hall University, and his Masters in Business Administration at Columbia University. Dr. Lynch is a member of Licensing Executives Society, Venture Association of New Jersey, Biotechnology Council of New Jersey and the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America.
Recently, Dr. Lynch provided independent advisory services to several biopharmaceutical companies, including Drais Pharmaceuticals, a venture-backed, oncology company developing anti-tumor drugs, as its Acting Chief Business Officer.
Previously, he served as Vice President, Global Business Development at Savient Pharmaceuticals, and was an original member of the management team responsible for launching Reliant Pharmaceuticals, a specialty pharmaceutical company which was sold to Glaxo in 2007. Dr. Lynch initially served as Executive Director of Business Development where he helped originate and close several transactions creating Reliant's first commercial drug portfolio, and was subsequently appointed to Vice President of Commercial Operations.
During a nine-year career at Sandoz (now Novartis), Dr. Lynch held numerous technical and commercial positions in Technical Operations, New Product Management and Sandoz Research Institute. As a Managing Consultant within the pharmaceutical practice of PA Consulting Group, a UK-based technology consulting firm, he directed global projects for major pharma clients focusing on strategic portfolio planning, drug development and organizational planning.
At PhytoMedical, in addition to his appointment as President and CEO, Dr. Lynch also serves on the Company's Board of Directors. The Board thanks outgoing President and CEO, Mr. Greg Wujek, and expresses sincere appreciation for his significant efforts during the past several years, which includes his acquisition and development of the Company's lead anti cancer compound for glioblastoma, a difficult-to-treat brain cancer.
PhytoMedical's Cancer Research: Killing Cancer's DNA
Led by Dartmouth College researcher Dr. Gordon Gribble, PhytoMedical is developing a novel class of patented anti-cancer agents that have a 'cytotoxic' or poisonous affinity for cancer cells and are designed to bind more tightly to cancer cell DNA than many conventional anticancer drugs by a process called bis-intercalation or "double binding," much like a molecular staple. Because the DNA is the blueprint of life for the cancer cell, such binding stops the replication of the DNA, which prevents the growth of the cancer cell and it dies.
DNA is present in the nucleus of every cell of all living organisms, which are constantly dividing through a process in which the DNA in the nucleus of the original cell replicates itself to be present in the nuclei of the two new ("daughter") cells. If this replication cannot occur, the cell will die and the organism will eventually stop growing and die. Cancer is characterized by the development of abnormal cells that divide uncontrollably and have the ability to infiltrate and destroy normal body tissue.
At present, anticancer molecules designed to block the replication of DNA do so through "intercalation," a mechanism in which the drug inserts itself between one set of adjacent base pairs of the DNA. PhytoMedical believes a more effective anticancer strategy is to design molecules ("bis-intercalators") that can intercalate simultaneously at two DNA sites, thus further increasing the binding between the drug and the DNA of specific cancer cells in order to stop their replication and ultimately resulting in the death of the cancer cell.
About PhytoMedical Technologies, Inc.
PhytoMedical Technologies, Inc. /quotes/comstock/11k!pyto (PYTO 0.05, -0.01, -10.00%) , together with its wholly owned subsidiaries, is a pharmaceutical company focused on research, development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products.
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SOURCE: PhytoMedical Technologies, Inc.
PhytoMedical Technologies, Inc.
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