Dr. Melnick to lead clinical team as Spero prepares to enter late-stage clinical trials.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Jan. 04, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Spero Therapeutics (Nasdaq:SPRO), a multi-asset clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on identifying, developing and commercializing novel treatments for multidrug-resistant bacterial infections, today announced the appointment of David Melnick, M.D., as Chief Medical Officer to oversee Spero’s clinical development and regulatory strategy. Dr. Melnick brings significant clinical experience to Spero with 18 years in anti-infective drug development including seven successful anti-infective drug approvals.
“I am excited to welcome David to Spero, and look forward to leveraging his clinical expertise and leadership to successfully expand and advance our diverse pipeline of anti-infectives through clinical development,” said Ankit Mahadevia, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Spero Therapeutics. “David’s experience advancing multiple therapies to approval is a tremendous addition to our highly experienced team and will be instrumental in our mission to combat the growing threat of multidrug-resistant bacteria.”
Prior to joining Spero Therapeutics, Dr. Melnick served as Vice President of Clinical Development for Anti-Infectives at Allergan since 2015. In that capacity, he oversaw the development and regulatory approval of Teflaro®, Avycaz®, and Dalvance® in the United States. Prior to Allergan, Dr. Melnick served fifteen years at AstraZeneca in various levels of increasing responsibility, most recently as Vice President of Clinical Development for Anti-Infectives. In that capacity, he oversaw the late stage clinical development of Merrem®, Teflaro®, and Avycaz®. In addition, he served as the acting Vice President for early development at AstraZeneca. He received his medical training at Columbia University, followed by a Residency in Internal Medicine at The New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center. Following a Fellowship in Infectious Disease at Yale University, he held faculty positions at the Boston University School of Medicine and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. He subsequently joined Kaiser-Permanente as a practicing Infectious Diseases specialist and as the Director of HIV Clinical Research at Kaiser Permanente Mid-Atlantic, with a faculty appointment at Georgetown University.
About Spero
Spero Therapeutics is a multi-asset, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on identifying, developing and commercializing novel treatments for multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial infections.
Spero is advancing SPR994, which is designed to be the first broad-spectrum oral antibiotic for use in adults to treat MDR Gram-negative infections.
Spero is also advancing its Potentiator Platform, which it believes will enable it to develop drugs that will expand the spectrum and potency of existing antibiotics, including formerly inactive antibiotics, against Gram-negative bacteria. The product candidates are two IV-administered agents, SPR741 and SPR206, designed to treat MDR Gram-negative infections in the hospital setting.
Spero is also developing SPR720, its novel oral therapy product candidate designed for the treatment of pulmonary non-tuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) infections.
For more information, visit https://sperotherapeutics.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements about the initiation, timing, progress and results of the Company’s preclinical studies and clinical trials and the Company’s research and development programs, the timing of clinical data, the Company’s cash forecast and anticipated expenses and the sufficiency of the Company’s cash resources. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expect,” “plan,” “aim,” “anticipate,” “could,” “intent,” “target,” “project,” “contemplate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including whether results obtained in preclinical studies and clinical trials will be indicative of results obtained in future clinical trials; whether the Company’s product candidates will advance through the preclinical development and clinical trial process on a timely basis, or at all; whether the results of such trials will warrant submission for approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration or equivalent foreign regulatory agencies; whether the Company’s cash resources will be sufficient to fund its continuing operations for the periods and/or trials anticipated; and other factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 14, 2017, and risks described in other filings the Company may make with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the future. The forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the Company’s views as of the date of this press release. The Company anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause its views to change. However, while the Company may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, it specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company’s views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.
Spero Investor Contact:
Sharon Klahre
Director, Investor Relations
857-242-1547
IR@sperotherapeutics.com
