ROCKVILLE, Md., July 25 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- EntreMed, Inc. announced that it has established a Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) to advise the Company on its priority research and drug development programs, incorporate advances in cellular targeting and drug mechanisms-of- action, and identify key external collaborations to advance the development process. Tak W. Mak, OC., FRS, Director of the Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research and Professor at the University of Toronto, will serve as Chairman. Members of the SAB include the following:
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20010620/ENMDLOGO ) * Tak W. Mak, OC., FRS (Chairman) -- Director, The Campbell 7Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, and Professor, University of Toronto, Departments of Medical Biophysics and Immunology. Dr. Mak served as Vice President of Research, Amgen, Inc. and Director of the Amgen Research Institute (Toronto) from 1993 to 2002. Dr. Mak is internationally recognized for his breakthrough discoveries in cancer genetics, immunology, molecular biology and virology. These discoveries include locating, isolating and cloning the T cell receptor and creating genetically-engineered mice to increase the understanding of the human immune system, apoptosis and tumorigenesis. He holds numerous patents and has published over 500 articles in high-impact scientific journals around the world. Dr. Mak has received several awards including the Sloan Prize of the General Motors Cancer Foundation, King Faisal International Prize for Medicine, Novartis Prize in Immunology, Gairdner International Award, E.W.R. Steacie Award (NSERC), Ayerst Award (Canadian Biochemical Society), Stacie Prize (Stacie Trust Foundation), Robert Noble Prize (NCIC), Killam Prize in Health Sciences (Canada Council for the Arts) and the Order of Canada. In March 2004, he received the 2004 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Preis in Germany. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences (USA), the Royal Society of London, and the Royal Society of Canada. * S. Gail Eckhardt, M.D. -- Professor of Medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in Aurora, Colorado, also serves as Director of the Developmental Therapeutics Program at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and will assume the position of Division Head, Medical Oncology in October 2006. Dr. Eckhardt also oversees the clinical Phase I and GI Malignancies Programs and the Colorectal Cancer Translational Research Laboratory. Dr. Eckhardt earned her medical degree from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas. She completed her internship and residency in internal medicine at the University of Virginia Medical Center in Charlottesville. Her postgraduate training also includes a research fellowship at the Division of Experimental and Molecular Medicine, Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation, La Jolla, California; a medical oncology fellowship at the Division of Hematology/Oncology, University of California, San Diego Hospitals, and a research fellowship, Departments of Medicine and Biology, University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine, La Jolla. Dr. Eckhardt has served on numerous committees/study sections, including the ASCO Molecular Oncology Task Force, the EORTC Early Clinical Trials Review Panel, and the NCI Drug Development Group. She was also Chair of the ASCO Program Committee in 2003, and Co-Chair of the first ASCO/SSO/ASTRO/AGA GI Symposium in 2004. In addition, Dr. Eckhardt is an Associate Editor of Clinical Cancer Research, and Investigational New Drugs. Furthermore, she is the Principal Investigator on several NIH grants involving early clinical trials and colorectal cancer research and has conducted numerous phase I and II clinical trials. She has published over 60 manuscripts and serves on numerous advisory boards. Dr. Eckhardt is currently serving on the ASCO Board of Directors, the FDA Oncology Drugs Advisory Committee, and the Investigational Drug and Gastrointestinal Steering Committees of the NCI. * Michael E. Weinblatt, M.D. -- Co-Director of Clinical Rheumatology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Weinblatt specializes in therapeutic interventions in rheumatoid arthritis. He is co-editor of the textbook, Treatment of Rheumatic Diseases, the textbook, Rheumatology 3rd edition, and author of the Arthritis Action Program. Dr. Weinblatt co-received the Arthritis Foundation Virginia P. Engalitcheff Award for Impact on Quality of Life and the Carol Nachman Prize (2005) for his work on the development of methotrexate as a therapy for rheumatoid arthritis. Dr. Weinblatt served as an Associate Editor of Arthritis and Rheumatism and currently sits on multiple editorial boards including the Journal of Rheumatology. He was a member of the Rheumatology Subspecialty Board of the American Board of Internal Medicine. Dr. Weinblatt has also served as the President of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR). * Hans Wigzell, M.D., Ph.D. -- Professor Wigzell served as the President of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden from 1995 to 2003, and has served as Professor of Immunology at Karolinska and Uppsala University. In 1990, Dr. Wigzell was elected Chairman of the European Union (EU) Concerted Research Programme into AIDS vaccination, EVA. He served as the Chairman of the Nobel Committee at Karolinska Institute 1990-1992. In 1991, Dr. Wigzell was appointed Director of the Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control. Since 1999, he has served as Chief Scientific Advisor to the Swedish Government. Dr. Wigzell graduated from the Karolinska Institute as Doctor of Medicine (M.D. and also as a Ph.D.). Dr. Wigzell is a member of several national academies of sciences and has published more than 700 articles in international peer reviewed journals. * Carolyn F. Sidor, M.D. -- Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of EntreMed joined the Company in 2001 as Vice President, Clinical & Regulatory Affairs. She was appointed Chief Medical Officer in September 2004. Dr. Sidor is a board-certified hematologist/medical oncologist. From 1993 until 2001, Dr. Sidor held various leadership positions at Cato Research Ltd., a prominent Clinical Research Organization (CRO), including Vice President, Scientific and Medical Development; Medical Director; Senior Clinical Research Physician; and Project Director. Dr. Sidor also holds a clinical staff appointment in the Department of Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. From 1985 to 1993, Dr. Sidor was Associate Professor and Physician at Philadelphia’s Lankenau Hospital, Department of Medicine. She earned her M.D. degree from Thomas Jefferson University School of Medicine and her M.B.A. degree from the University of Delaware.
James S. Burns, President and Chief Executive Officer of EntreMed commented, “The formation of the Scientific Advisory Board is an important step in guiding our development of novel, small molecule drug candidates for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases. Our focus is on development of drugs that interfere in multiple pathways that disease cells use for their survival, to disrupt their ability to proliferate, to induce apoptosis, and to destroy the blood vessels that nourish them. We believe that multi-mechanism drugs represent a next generation approach to drug development and will be significant contributors to future disease treatment.”
Mr. Burns further noted, “Our SAB members are internationally recognized experts in scientific fields directly applicable to our drug candidates and drug targets. Together with our clinical oncology investigators and key program collaborators, we are now positioned to better understand the latest scientific advances and more effectively direct our development efforts.”
About EntreMed
EntreMed, Inc. is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing therapeutic candidates primarily for the treatment of cancer and inflammation. Panzem(R) (2-methoxyestradiol or 2ME2), the Company’s lead drug candidate, is currently in Phase 2 clinical trials for cancer, as well as in preclinical development for rheumatoid arthritis. MKC-1, an oral cell cycle regulator, is in Phase 2 studies for metastatic breast cancer. ENMD-1198, a novel tubulin binding agent, is also in Phase 1 studies in advanced cancers. EntreMed’s goal is to develop and commercialize new compounds based on the Company’s expertise in angiogenesis, cell cycle regulation and inflammation -- processes vital to the treatment of cancer and other diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis. Additional information about EntreMed is available on the Company’s website at http://www.entremed.com and in various filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Forward Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act with respect to the outlook for expectations for future financial or business performance, strategies, expectations and goals. Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, which change over time. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made, and no duty to update forward-looking statements is assumed. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors, including those set forth in Securities and Exchange Commission filings under “Risk Factors,” including risks relating to the need for additional capital and the uncertainty of additional funding; risks associated with the integration of Miikana and its product candidates; the early-stage products under development; results in preclinical models are not necessarily indicative of clinical results, uncertainties relating to preclinical and clinical trials; success in the clinical development of any products; dependence on third parties; future capital needs; and risks relating to the commercialization, if any, of the Company’s proposed products (such as marketing, safety, regulatory, patent, product liability, supply, competition and other risks).
CONTACT: Ginny Dunn EntreMed, Inc. Associate Director Corporate Communications & Investor Relations (240) 864-2643
Photo: Newscom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20010620/ENMDLOGOAP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.orgPRN Photo Desk photodesk@prnewswire.comEntreMed, Inc.
CONTACT: Ginny Dunn, Associate Director, Corporate Communications &Investor Relations, of EntreMed, Inc., +1-240-864-2643
Web site: http://www.entremed.com/
