HAYWARD, Calif., June 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Metabolex Inc., a biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery and development of novel therapeutics for diabetes and related metabolic disorders, announced that Robert B. Chess has been elected to its Board of Directors. Mr. Chess was elected at the June 7 meeting of the board.
Mr. Chess recently served as interim president and chief executive officer of Nektar Therapeutics, posts he had held previously from 1992 to 2000. He remains the chairman of the board at Nektar. Before joining Nektar, he had worked as an associate deputy director in the White House Office of Policy Development and as president of Penederm Inc., a topical dermatological drug delivery company that he co-founded in 1987.
"Mr. Chess' election will bring to the board the unique perspective of a seasoned biopharmaceutical executive with a track record of bringing breakthrough biotechnology products to market," said Harold Van Wart, president and chief executive officer of Metabolex. "We look forward to his guidance as we push ahead with MBX-102, our type 2 diabetes drug now being tested in a Phase 2/3 trial, and our other promising clinic and preclinical candidates."
Mr. Chess holds an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School and received a B.S. in engineering from the California Institute of Technology. He is a director of Biotechnology Industry Organization, the biotechnology trade organization, and serves as chairman of BIO Ventures for Global Health. A lecturer on health care management and entrepreneurship at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Mr. Chess also serves on the Board of Trustees of the California Institute of Technology.
About Metabolex
Metabolex is a privately held biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery and development of novel therapeutics to transform the treatment of diabetes and related metabolic disorders. Metabolex has drawn on its deep understanding of diabetes to create the largest database of genes involved in diabetes and to build a rich pipeline of product candidates and drug discovery targets. The company has three clinical-stage compounds: MBX-102, in Phase 2/3 testing; MBX-2044, in Phase 2a; and MBX-8025, being studied in dyslipidemia, which has completed Phase 1 studies. Ortho-McNeil, Inc. has the exclusive right to develop and commercialize MBX-102 and MBX-2044.
For additional information about Metabolex and its development pipeline, visit http://www.metabolex.com.
Metabolex Inc.CONTACT: Harold Van Wart of Metabolex Inc., +1-510-293-8800,hvanwart@metabolex.com; Brian Reid of WeissComm Partners, +1-703-402-3626,breid@weisscommpartners.com, for Metabolex Inc.
Web site: http://www.metabolex.com/
