DURHAM, N.C., Aug. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Regado Biosciences today announced the appointment of David J. Mazzo, Ph.D., as President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective immediately. Dr. Mazzo brings to Regado almost 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, most recently as President and CEO of AEterna Zentaris. Dr. Mazzo also has served as President and CEO of Chugai Pharma USA, LLC, the U.S. subsidiary of Chugai Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. of Japan, a member of the Roche Group. Dr. Mazzo replaces Regado co- founder Douglas Gooding.
Dennis Podlesak, Chairman of the Board of Regado, stated, “Dr. Mazzo’s appointment comes at an important growth phase for the Company. The data from our ongoing Phase IIa study of the REG1 Anticoagulation System are expected later this year. This is the first study of the REG1 system in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention. Dr. Mazzo’s senior leadership experience, his strong scientific background and commercial and regulatory expertise will be invaluable to the Company as Regado advances and expands its clinical development programs.”
Throughout his career in the pharmaceutical industry, Dr. Mazzo has acquired a thorough understanding of the drug development process from discovery through manufacturing, launch and commercialization. Prior to joining Chugai, Dr. Mazzo held positions of increasing responsibility with Merck & Co., Baxter, Rhone-Poulenc Rorer, Hoechst Marion Roussel, and Schering-Plough.
Dr. Mazzo commented, “I am excited for the opportunity to lead Regado through its next stage of growth. My primary goals are to build upon the Company’s established success and further harness the great potential in Regado’s lead programs and discovery platform. The Company is unique in its focus on developing aptamer therapeutics paired with agents that can directly modulate their activity. This has the potential to provide unprecedented control to the physician and represents an evolution for patient care in the hospital setting.”
Dr. Mazzo currently is Non-Executive Chairman of Psivida, Inc. and a Director of Avanir Pharmaceuticals. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in the Honors Program (Interdisciplinary Humanities) and a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from Villanova University. In addition, Dr. Mazzo received his Master of Science degree in Chemistry and his Ph.D. degree in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He was also a research fellow at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland.
About Regado Biosciences
Regado Biosciences is pioneering a new therapeutic field with the discovery and development of drug:antidote systems. These systems comprise aptamer therapeutics that can be directly controlled by a specific and matched oligonucleotide agent. Regado’s technology is designed to give physicians the ability to directly control and fine tune each product’s therapeutic effect. This control and flexibility allows physicians to meet the individual needs of each patient independent of the setting. A spin-out of the Department of Surgery at Duke University Medical Center, Regado was created to answer the therapeutic needs identified by its scientific founders and clinical advisors.
The Company’s proprietary platform technology enables the discovery of oligonucleotide-based drug-modulating pairs to any target protein. Regado initially is focusing its discovery and development efforts on acute care injectable antithrombotics, a multi-billion dollar market in need of therapeutics with improved safety profiles.
Current investors in Regado include Domain (Princeton, NJ), Quaker BioVentures (Philadelphia, PA), Aurora Funds (Durham, NC) and Caxton Advantage Life Sciences Fund (New York, NY), as well as individual investors, including Robert Kierlin.
CONTACT: David J. Mazzo, Ph.D., Regado Biosciences, +1-919-287-9428; or
Justin Jackson (media), jjackson@burnsmc.com, or Juliane Snowden
(investors), jsnowden@burnsmc.com, both of Burns McClellan, Inc.,
+1-212-213-0006
