EMERYVILLE, Calif., Oct. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NovaBay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NYSE-Amex: NBY), a clinical stage company developing non-antibiotic anti-infective compounds for the treatment or prevention of a wide range of bacterial, viral, and fungal infections, today announced that the company has named Mark Anderson, Ph.D. as chief scientific officer, a new position for the company.
“We are adding Mark to our team at a critical time as our partnerships with Alcon and Galderma gather significant clinical momentum and our already robust internal pipeline continues to expand,” said Ron Najafi, Ph.D., chairman and chief executive officer of NovaBay. “Mark’s expertise in the field of infectious diseases and proven track record of clinical success, combined with his demonstrated leadership capabilities, make him an excellent addition to our team. We look forward to his contributions as his experience adds great depth and a new dimension to our management team in this strategically important area to the business.”
Dr. Anderson’s credentials include over 17 years of successfully leading research and development programs. He holds numerous patents, patent applications and publications to his credit. Prior to joining NovaBay, he has held senior positions at Myriad Genetics, Elitra Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer-Agouron and Ligand-Glycomed. Dr. Anderson holds a doctorate from Purdue University, and completed postdoctoral studies in chemical biology at Harvard University.
“It is an honor to be working with this accomplished scientific team,” commented Dr. Anderson. “NovaBay’s Aganocide(R) compounds offer the potential to significantly impact the widespread and growing problem of drug resistance to bacterial, viral and fungal infections. I look forward to beginning my work to further expand the already impressive portfolio of product candidates.”
About Aganocide(R) Compounds
The Aganocide compounds are novel, proprietary, synthetic N-chlorinated antimicrobial molecules specifically designed by NovaBay to mimic the body’s natural defense against infection. The Aganocide compounds maintain the biological activities while improving the stability of naturally occurring N-chlorinated antimicrobial molecules. These highly differentiated compounds may deliver the same or better efficacy than currently used antibiotics without contributing to the growing rise of bacterial resistance. In preclinical trials, the Aganocide compounds have shown to be highly effective against bacteria, viruses and fungi. They have also been demonstrated to be effective against bacteria in biofilm, which render most antibiotics ineffective. These compounds have a potentially broad therapeutic index providing a high degree of potency, good tolerability and dosing versatility and flexibility.
About NovaBay Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
NovaBay Pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing its proprietary and patented Aganocide compounds, first-in-class, novel, synthetic anti-infective product candidates that are bioequivalent to the active antimicrobial molecules generated within white blood cells to treat and prevent a wide range of infections without causing resistance. NovaBay has internal development programs aimed at addressing hospital and respiratory infections. The company has a licensing and research collaboration agreement with Alcon, Inc. for use of its Aganocides in the eye, ear and sinus, and in contact lens solutions. NovaBay has entered into an agreement with Galderma S.A. to develop and commercialize Aganocides in acne, impetigo and other dermatological indications. NovaBay(TM) and Aganocide(R) are trademarks of NovaBay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. For more information on NovaBay, visit www.novabaypharma.com.
Cautionary Information Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
The statements in this press release regarding NovaBay’s expectations of the potential for its product candidates to address the problems of drug-resistant bacteria in the looming post-antibiotic era are forward-looking statements subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results may be different than those NovaBay expects due to a number of factors, including the risk that results in clinical trials will not be as NovaBay predicts, the risk that FDA or other regulatory review may delay or prevent the development or commercialization of NovaBay’s product candidates and other risks relating to NovaBay and its Aganocide compounds, detailed in NovaBay’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, under the caption “Risk Factors” in Item 1A of Part II of that report, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 14, 2009.
SOURCE NovaBay Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
CONTACT: Aimee Corso, +1-503-855-4502, acorso@wcpglobal.com, for NovaBay
Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Web site: http://www.novabaypharma.com/
