XDx Announces Appointment Of Dr. James Yee As Chief Medical Officer
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Aug. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- XDx, a molecular diagnostics company, announced today the appointment of James P. Yee, M.D., Ph.D., to the position of chief medical officer (CMO). In this role, effective August 1, 2006, Dr. Yee will leverage his significant leadership experience in research and development to oversee the company's further development and expansion of their first service offering, the AlloMap(TM) molecular expression test.
"We are pleased to have Jim Yee join the XDx executive team," said Pierre Cassigneul, president and chief executive officer of XDx. "Jim has extensive experience in product development and clinical research and has an impressive track record of successfully leading products through the NDA process. His experience, paired with his educational background in medicine, biophysics and engineering will make him invaluable during this important growth period for XDx."
Dr. Yee brings to XDx more than 20 years of research and development experience. Most recently, Dr. Yee served as vice president and head of development for Celera Genomics, where he built the development organization at Celera South San Francisco and lead clinical research and therapeutic development activities for cancer and immune-mediated inflammatory diseases.
"I am excited about this opportunity and thrilled to join a company with such a broad-based technology platform," said Dr. Yee. "XDx's proprietary technology to measure gene expression has enormous potential, and I am extremely eager to lead the team that plans to broaden its application."
Prior to his work at Celera, Dr. Yee served as vice president of preclinical research for the Inflammatory and Viral Diseases unit at Roche Bioscience. In this role, he lead the team responsible for selecting and evaluating compounds for clinical drug development and oversaw groups responsible for toxicology, drug metabolism, pharmacokinetics, bioanalytical chemistry, analytical chemistry, formulations, regulatory affairs, project management and clinical research.
Earlier in his career, Dr. Yee held a variety of research and development positions of increasing responsibility at Syntex Corporation, including vice president and director of the Institute for Clinical Medicine. Under Dr. Yee's direction, medicines for therapeutic areas such as organ transplantation, cardiovascular disease, pain and rheumatology advanced from clinical development to global commercialization.
Dr. Yee received his Bachelor's degree from the University of California at Berkeley (UC Berkeley) in electrical engineering and computer science. Dr. Yee went on to earn a Ph.D. in biophysics at UC Berkeley. He attended the University of California, Los Angeles School of Medicine to earn his medical degree, and he is board certified in internal medicine.
Dr. Yee will succeed Jay Wohlgemuth, M.D., who has served as CMO and played a key role in research and development as one of the founding scientists of XDx. Dr. Wohlgemuth will remain a member of the company's Advisory Board.
About XDx
Founded in 2000, XDx is a molecular diagnostics company based in South San Francisco, Calif. Setting the stage for a new era in personalized medicine, XDx is one of the first companies to develop and commercialize practical applications built on insights from the Human Genome Project. The company has developed a proprietary new method for non-invasively monitoring the immune system by measuring gene expression in a patients' peripheral blood. The technology offers the potential to decrease healthcare costs and significantly improve the quality of life for patients with a variety of life-threatening or life-altering, immune-mediated diseases. More information can be found at www.xdx.com.
About AlloMap(TM) Molecular Expression Testing
AlloMap molecular expression testing is a non-invasive method for detecting the absence of rejection in heart transplant recipients. AlloMap testing is available only through the clinical laboratory at XDx in South San Francisco, where it was developed and validated. The test translates the complex signals of the immune system's multiple genes and pathways, specifically those associated with heart transplant rejection, into an objective, actionable score. AlloMap testing enables clinicians -- for the first time -- to monitor the immune system early, before tissue damage occurs. The clinical value of AlloMap testing was validated with samples and clinical data from a landmark multi-center, prospective study known as the Cardiac Allograft Rejection Gene Expression Observational (CARGO) study. In addition, clinical trials are currently underway to determine the value of AlloMap testing in lung transplantation. The company also plans to evaluate the utility of this technology in autoimmune conditions such as lupus and Crohn's disease. More information can be found at www.allomap.com.
XDxCONTACT: Tammy Reilly of XDx, +1-650-624-0120; or Kelly McKenna MS&L,+1-415-278-3318, for XDx