ZURICH, Oct. 9, 2012
/PRNewswire/ -- Cytos Biotechnology Ltd ("Cytos" or "the
Company"), a Swiss biotech company focused on the development of
CYT003 in allergic asthma, announced today the appointment of Dr.
Christian Itin as Chief Executive
Officer. As announced on 29 May 2012,
the Board will propose to the Company's shareholders that
Dr. Itin be elected as member of the Board, and it is intended
that he will succeed Dr. Thomas
Hecht as Chairman of the Board of Directors as of an
extraordinary shareholders meeting scheduled to take place in
November 2012. Dr. Hecht will step
down from the Cytos Board at this meeting.
Dr. Itin (age 48 yrs.) is the former President and Chief
Executive Officer of Micromet Inc., a previously Nasdaq-listed
biopharmaceutical company, with headquarters in the USA and an R&D center in Germany.
Dr. Itin led Micromet as CEO from 2004 until Micromet's acquisition
by Amgen for $1.2 billion in cash in
March 2012. In total he spent 13
years in senior management roles at Micromet. Prior to joining
Micromet in 1999, Dr. Itin co-founded Zyomyx, Inc., a protein chip
company based in Hayward, CA,
USA.
Dr. Itin received a diploma in biology and a Ph.D. in cell
biology from the University of Basel. In addition, he performed post-doctoral
research at the Biocenter of Basel
University and at the Stanford
University School of Medicine.
Thomas Hecht, Chairman of Cytos,
said: "Christian is an experienced biotech leader with significant
expertise and a proven track record and his appointment completes
our restructuring of Cytos. We believe with his experience and
skills that he is well positioned to shape Cytos' future."
Christian Itin commented: "Cytos
has undergone an important transformation during the last six
months. The company is well capitalized by a strong group of new
international investors and focused on executing a key clinical
Phase 2b study with CYT003, a first in class novel biologic for the
treatment of patients with allergic asthma. This is an exciting
time to join Cytos, and I'm thrilled to be a part of the team
building it into a premier biopharmaceutical company."
Dr. Joseph Anderson, Chairman of
the Board's Nomination and Governance Committee and Partner at
Abingworth, a major shareholder, added: "On behalf of the Board, I
would like to thank Thomas for his leadership during a period that
led to the refinancing of Cytos. He leaves the Company in a strong
position, and we are pleased that Christian has joined as CEO,
where we anticipate his proven leadership will allow the Company to
realize the significant potential of CYT003."
Further Board Change
Jakob Schlapbach, a
Non-executive member of Cytos' Board of Directors and the Company's
former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
(2000-2010), will also resign from the Board of Directors at the
extraordinary shareholders meeting in November.
Thomas Hecht commented: "Jakob
has been involved with Cytos for more than 12 years whereby he
played a central role in several financing rounds and in the IPO.
We are very appreciative of the many contributions he has made
during that period. We wish him well in his future
endeavours."
For further information please contact:
Cytos Biotechnology Ltd
Harry Welten
Chief Financial Officer
Tel.: +41 44 733 46 46
e-Mail: harry.welten@cytos.com
Website: www.cytos.com
About Cytos Biotechnology Ltd
Cytos Biotechnology Ltd is a Swiss public
biotechnology company focused on the development of its lead
product candidate CYT003 in allergic asthma. CYT003 has
successfully completed a phase 2a trial in patients with persistent
allergic asthma receiving standard inhaled corticosteroid (ICS)
treatment, where it was shown to maintain lung function and asthma
control as ICS treatment was withdrawn. CYT003 acts via a novel
mechanism of action: it targets the Toll-like receptor 9 (TLR-9)
pathway, which inhibits the immune response that leads to the
allergic asthma response. Cytos plans to initiate Phase 2b studies
with CYT003 in allergic asthma patients in 2012.
Cytos was founded in 1995 as a spinoff from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in
Zurich. It is located in Schlieren
(Zurich). The Company is listed
according to the Main Standard on the SIX Swiss Exchange Ltd under
the symbol CYTN.
This foregoing press release may contain forward-looking
statements that include words or phrases such as "are intended
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SOURCE Cytos Biotechnology Ltd
