Accera Appoints Ernest Wong, Ph.D., as Head of Corporate Development

BROOMFIELD, Colo., March 8, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Accera, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on product development for Alzheimer's disease, today announced the appointment of Ernest Wong, Ph.D., MBA, as vice president of corporate development.

Dr. Wong has over 20 years of experience in the biopharmaceutical industry, with over 15 years in the area of business development and licensing. Dr. Wong joins the company from Piramal Imaging, where he was responsible for business development and licensing transactions in neuroimaging as vice president and head of business development. At Piramal Imaging, Dr. Wong executed multiple commercial agreements as part of a global launch of an amyloid plaque neuroimaging agent for Alzheimer's disease and also in-licensed a tau protein neuroimaging agent for Alzheimer's disease. Prior to his work at Piramal Imaging, he led corporate development at YM BioSciences, executing a partnering campaign for a Phase 2/3 JAK inhibitor that resulted in the acquisition of the company by Gilead. His business development experience also includes executing transactions at OSI Pharmaceuticals and AnorMED. Dr. Wong holds a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of British Columbia and an MBA from the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

"Dr. Wong brings a wealth of experience in corporate development as well as a deep knowledge of and network in the Alzheimer's disease field," said Dr. Charles Stacey, CEO of Accera. "As we work to complete the clinical development of AC-1204, currently being evaluated in the Phase 3 NOURISH AD trial, Dr. Wong's experience will allow us to explore pipeline opportunities that leverage Accera' s capabilities in Alzheimer's disease and in the broader area of neuronal metabolism. 

Dr. Wong added, "AC-1204 has immense potential to address the profound need for new therapies for patients with Alzheimer's disease. As they prove useful in the clinic, approaches that apply new mechanisms for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, like AC-1204, have the potential to demonstrate immense value in the market and in the lives of patients and their families. I'm glad to be able to add my experience in the area of Alzheimer's disease to the team at Accera."

About the NOURISH AD Phase 3 Clinical Study

NOURISH AD is a 26-week, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study investigating the effects of daily administration of AC-1204 in subjects with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease with an optional 26-week open-label extension. Conducted at 66 sites in the U.S., the study is currently enrolling patients with an anticipated total of 480. The primary endpoints will examine the effects of AC-1204 on memory and cognition as measured by the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog) and global function as measured by the Alzheimer's Disease Study Cooperative Study – Clinicians Global Impression of Change (ADCS-CGIC) after 26 weeks among non-carriers of the epsilon 4 variant of the gene apolipoprotein E (APOE4). The study will also evaluate activities of daily living, resource utilization and quality of life among subjects with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's.

For more information, visit www.ad-trial.com.

About Accera

Accera, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company based in Broomfield, Colorado, developing therapies for central nervous system disorders. The company's proprietary scientific platform addresses unmet medical needs in brain health, including Alzheimer's disease. From its roots in developing a marketed product, Axona^®, Accera has advanced to the clinical development of drugs with innovative mechanisms of actions. The company's management team includes globally recognized specialists in central nervous system diseases and drug development, who together leverage the latest scientific knowledge and understanding of neurological disorders. Accera's lead product candidate is AC-1204, a ketosis-inducing compound in a Phase 3 clinical study in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease.

For more information, visit www.accerapharma.com.

Accera Media Contacts: 

Russo Partners LLC

Todd Davenport, Ph.D.
(212) 845-4235
[email protected]

David Schull  
(212) 845-4271
(858) 717-2310 Mobile             
[email protected]    

SOURCE Accera, Inc.