Kolltan Pharmaceuticals Inc.’ Dr. Joseph Schlessinger Named To Medicine Maker Power List 2015

NEW HAVEN, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kolltan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that Joseph Schlessinger, Ph.D., Chairman of the Department of Pharmacology and the William H. Prusoff Professor at Yale University School of Medicine, as well as founding director of Yale’s Cancer Biology Institute and co-founder of Kolltan, has been named one of the top 100 most influential people in drug development and manufacture by the publication The Medicine Maker.

“At Kolltan, we are honored to collaborate with Yossi and are elated that he is being acknowledged for his many contributions to drug discovery.”

Dr. Schlessinger is a world-renowned leader in the field of signal transduction. During his 40-year scientific career, his research has been focused primarily on elucidating the mechanism of action and cellular signaling pathways that are regulated by receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) normally and in different diseases. The realization that activated RTKs can drive various forms of cancer led to the development of numerous drug therapies to combat them. Dr. Schlessinger has been a founding scientist for three biotechnology companies -- SUGEN, Plexxikon, and Kolltan – which have pioneered innovation leading to robust R&D pipelines and several drugs currently marketed globally by large pharmaceutical companies.

“Dr. Schlessinger’s research in signal transduction and cell surface receptors has launched numerous promising programs to fight cancer, including at Kolltan, and his insights have resulted in drugs having a major impact on the lives of cancer patients,” said Jerry McMahon, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Kolltan. “At Kolltan, we are honored to collaborate with Yossi and are elated that he is being acknowledged for his many contributions to drug discovery.”

UK-based The Medicine Maker is a monthly publication with a focus on clinical, regulatory, development and manufacturing fields for bio/pharmaceuticals. The publication’s readers nominate individuals to the annual Power List, which is selected and ranked by an independent jury.

About Kolltan Pharmaceuticals

Kolltan, a privately held clinical-stage company, is focused on the discovery and development of novel antibody-based drugs targeting receptor tyrosine kinases for the treatment of cancer and other diseases with significant unmet need. Kolltan’s founders and members of its management team have deep expertise and a proven track record in drug discovery, development and commercialization of innovative therapeutics, including drugs targeting kinases. Kolltan is working in close collaboration with the laboratory of Kolltan Co-Founder, Dr. Joseph Schlessinger, as well as the Yale University medical and scientific community. The Company has a broad and novel portfolio of therapeutic biologics targeting multiple receptor tyrosine kinases that are advancing in clinical and preclinical development and are expected to generate multiple near-term milestones.