PROVIDENCE, R.I.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tivorsan Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotechnology company pioneering a novel approach to treating Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and other serious neuromuscular disorders, today announced that James E. Connolly has joined the company as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and a member of the Board. Connolly is an accomplished business executive with more than 25 years of leadership roles in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and non-profit sectors.
"I would also like to recognize Joel Braunstein for his efforts serving as acting CEO and his continuing role as a Board member."
"I'm excited about joining Tivorsan, a company that has the potential to become a significant player in the arena of neuromuscular disorders," Connolly said. "Leading Tivorsan will enable me to apply all that I've learned during my career in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries to help bring much-needed treatments to patients and their families living with Duchenne, Becker and congenital muscular dystrophies, as well as other neuromuscular disorders."
"Throughout his extensive career, Jim Connolly has demonstrated strong leadership, management and business-building expertise, coupled with a passion for addressing unmet health needs. This is the exact blend of skills necessary to successfully transition Tivorsan to a development stage organization and advance our compound, recombinant human biglycan, into clinical trials with its initial indication for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy in the near future," said John P. Nicholson, MD, Chairman of the Board. "I would also like to recognize Joel Braunstein for his efforts serving as acting CEO and his continuing role as a Board member."
Connolly joins Tivorsan after several years of operating his own firm, JE Connolly Consulting, providing consulting and advisory services to pharmaceutical, biotechnology and investment organizations. Prior to consulting, Connolly served as President and CEO of Aeras, a Rockville, Maryland-based nonprofit global biotechnology organization working to develop tuberculosis vaccines in conjunction with a range of biotechnology, pharmaceutical and academic partners.
Connolly joined Aeras after more than two decades of pharmaceutical industry experience at Wyeth, where he held a series of increasingly senior management, commercial and finance positions in the United States and Canada. These included Executive Vice President and General Manager, Wyeth Vaccines; President and Managing Director, Wyeth Canada; Vice President – Sales and Marketing; Area Business Director for Northern California and Nevada; Business Director of Wyeth's joint venture with Merck-Medco; and Director of Finance for Wyeth Pharmaceuticals.
In his roles leading Wyeth Vaccines and Wyeth Canada, Connolly rebuilt the vaccines business and Canadian operations into significant growth drivers and contributors for the company. He has a proven and consistent track record of successfully developing and commercializing numerous biopharmaceutical products across a wide range of therapeutic areas, including infectious disease, central nervous system (CNS), inflammation and various other specialty care-based areas.
Connolly continues to serve on the Board of Directors for Aeras, as well as on the Boards of PaxVax and Vaxess Technologies. In addition, he is a Board member of Covenant House PA, a non-profit organization that serves homeless, runaway and trafficked youth.
Connolly received an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.
About Tivorsan Pharmaceuticals
Tivorsan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a protein therapeutics company pioneering a unique approach to treating serious neuromuscular disorders, including Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), Becker Muscular Dystrophy (BMD), various congenital muscular dystrophies (CMD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, as well as several other neuromuscular disorders. The approach, using recombinant human biglycan, is based on 25 years of basic science work conducted in the Fallon Laboratory at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
Tivorsan was formed by Justin Fallon, PhD, in collaboration with colleagues from Old Forge Holdings of Greenwich, Connecticut and LifeTech Research, a Baltimore, Maryland-based technology research and development firm. Early support for the Tivorsan program originated, in part, from federal sources, as well as Charley's Fund, Nash Avery Foundation, Muscular Dystrophy Association, and Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy, all of which are philanthropies seeking cures for DMD. For more information, visit http://www.tivorsan.com/.
for Tivorsan Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Janet Skidmore
Office: +1 215-658-4915
Mobile: +1 215-429-2917
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