SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Jan. 05, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Achaogen, Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAO), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel antibacterials addressing multi-drug resistant (MDR) gram-negative infections, today announced the appointment of Halley Gilbert, Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc., to its Board of Directors. Ms. Gilbert brings significant strategic leadership and two decades of experience navigating biopharmaceutical companies through various phases of growth and opportunity.
“Halley’s expertise and counsel come at an exciting time for our company, as we pursue regulatory approval of our lead product candidate, plazomicin, for the treatment of serious bacterial infections due to MDR Enterobacteriaceae, including carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae,” said Kenneth Hillan, M.B. Ch.B., Achaogen’s Chief Executive Officer. “Halley’s seasoned judgment and success helping biotechnology companies build and integrate critical functions and bring new products to market will be invaluable to Achaogen as we enter our next phase of growth and beyond.”
“I have tremendous respect for Achaogen’s passion and commitment to developing innovative medicine and making patients’ lives better,” said Ms. Gilbert. “I look forward to working with existing board members and the Achaogen management team to support plazomicin’s commercial objectives and advance the Company’s pipeline of promising candidates.”
Ms. Gilbert joined Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Ironwood Pharmaceuticals in 2008 as a founding member of its legal department, providing leadership and oversight and establishing the Company’s compliance function as Ironwood grew from a privately-held, research-based organization to a publicly-traded, fully-integrated commercial biotechnology company. Prior to Ironwood, Ms. Gilbert was Vice President, Deputy General Counsel at Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Inc. from 2002 to 2008, where she supported the launch of Cubist’s first acute care antibiotic, and she served as Corporate Counsel at Genzyme Corp. from 1999 to 2001. Ms. Gilbert began her legal career at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, where she specialized in mergers and acquisitions and securities law.
Ms. Gilbert received a J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law in Illinois and a B.A. from Tufts University in Massachusetts. She is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Allergy Amulet, Inc., a privately-held allergy device company, and of Greater Boston Legal Services, a not-for-profit entity that provides free legal services to more than 10,000 individuals and families in need per year.
About Achaogen
Achaogen is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company passionately committed to the discovery, development, and commercialization of novel antibacterials to treat MDR gram-negative infections. Achaogen is developing plazomicin, Achaogen’s lead product candidate, for the treatment of serious bacterial infections due to MDR Enterobacteriaceae, including carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae. Achaogen’s plazomicin program is funded in part with a contract from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. Plazomicin is the first clinical candidate from Achaogen’s gram-negative antibiotic discovery engine, and Achaogen has other programs in early and late preclinical stages focused on other MDR gram-negative infections. For more information, please visit www.achaogen.com.
