Aridis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Appoints Wolfgang Dummer, M.D., Ph.D., as Chief Medical Officer, and Mitchell H. Rosner, Ph.D. as Vice President of Quality

SAN JOSE, Calif., March 5, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Aridis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company applying proprietary technologies to produce novel anti-infectives and immunotherapies for infectious diseases, has appointed to its senior management team, Wolfgang Dummer, M.D., Ph.D., as Chief Medical Officer, and Mitchell H. Rosner as Vice President of Quality.

Dr. Dummer brings to Aridis more than 20 years of clinical and drug development experience at world class institutions, as well as an extensive academic history. He most recently served as Vice President of Clinical Development at BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapies for people with serious and life-threatening rare disorders. During his time at BioMarin, Dr. Dummer led his team to build a deep rare disease pipeline with up to seven molecules in more than 20 clinical trials. Most notably, he led the clinical development of BioMarin's leading marketed product, Vimizim (elosulfase alpha), through Phase 3, BLA/EU MA filing and FDA Advisory Committee preparation, ultimately leading to Vimizim's approval in the US, EU, and multiple countries worldwide.

Prior to his tenure at BioMarin, Dr. Dummer served for 11 years in capacities of increasing importance in Clinical Research and Development at Genentech, Inc. (now part of Roche).  Dr. Dummer oversaw numerous programs at Genentech, including Rituximab and Ocrelizumab. Dr. Dummer's scientific expertise is in immunology, he possesses a deep understanding of monoclonal antibodies, and he spent 3 years studying the role of T cells and B cells in autoimmunity and tumor immunology at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California.

Dr. Dummer graduated from the Technical University of Munich Medical School with an M.D. and a Ph.D. in Medical Sciences. He became a board-certified clinical dermatologist and allergist/immunologist. Over the course of his career, he has published more than 50 peer reviewed journal articles and has more than 40 abstracts, presentations, and book contributions.

Dr. Rosner joins Aridis with a wealth of experience in product development, from discovery to commercial phases for biologics, drugs, and medical devices at start-up, mid-sized and large companies.  His expertise spans across a number of areas, including formulation and specification development, analytical test method development and validation, and stability study design and evaluation, auditing of GMP, GLP, GCLP and GCP for internal use, continuous improvement, and vendor and supplier qualification.

Dr. Rosner was previously the Senior Director of Analytical Sciences and Quality at Synthetic Genomics, Inc., a synthetic biology company focused on modifying and writing genomes to enable transformative products in the areas of vaccines, medicines, nutrition, and biotechnology research. While at Synthetic Genomics, he managed methods development and testing to support several algal-based programs, including biofuels, carotenoids, pigments, omega 3 oils, and protein concentrates.

Dr. Rosner began his industrial career at IDEC Pharmaceuticals (now Biogen) and held positions where he led Quality Control and Analytics for CV Therapeutics (now Gilead Sciences), Nektar Therapeutics, Novartis (San Carlos) and Algenol Biotechnology. He earned his Ph.D. in Pharmacology and Toxicology from the University of Arizona and has several professional certifications in Quality.

About Aridis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Aridis is a private late-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of targeted immunotherapy using fully human monoclonal antibodies, or mAbs, to treat life-threatening infections. mAbs represent an innovative treatment approach that harnesses the human immune system to fight infections and are designed to overcome the deficiencies associated with current therapies, such as rise in drug resistance, short duration of response, negative impact on the human microbiome, and lack of differentiation among the treatment alternatives. Aridis' product pipeline includes AR-101, a fully human immunoglobulin M mAb targeting P. aeruginosa serotype O11; AR-301, a fully human immunoglobulin 1, or IgG1, mAb targeting hospital-acquired pneumonia, or HAP,  and ventilator-associated pneumonia, or VAP,  S. aureus alphatoxin; AR-105, a fully human IgG1 mAb being developed to treat acute pneumonia caused by P. aeruginosa infection; AR-501, a broad spectrum small molecule anti-infective being developed to manage both chronic lung infections in cystic fibrosis patients and acute pneumonia in HAP and VAP patients; AR-401, our mAb discovery program aimed at treating infections caused by Acinetobacter baumannii; and AR-201, a fully human IgG1 mAb that neutralizes diverse clinical isolates of respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV.

Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties.  These statements may be identified by the use of words such as "anticipate," "believe," "forecast," "estimated" and "intend" or other similar terms or expressions that concern Aridis's expectations, strategy, plans or intentions. These forward-looking statements are based on Aridis's current expectations and actual results could differ materially.  There are a number of factors that could cause actual events to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements.  These factors include, but are not limited to, the timing of regulatory submissions, Aridis's ability to obtain and maintain regulatory approval of its existing product candidates and any other product candidates it may develop, approvals for clinical trials may be delayed or withheld by regulatory agencies, risks relating to the timing and costs of clinical trials, risks associated with obtaining funding from third parties, management and employee operations and execution risks, loss of key personnel, competition, risks related to market acceptance of products, intellectual property risks, risks associated with the uncertainty of future financial results, Aridis's ability to attract collaborators and partners and risks associated with Aridis's reliance on third party organizations.  While the list of factors presented here is considered representative, no such list should be considered to be a complete statement of all potential risks and uncertainties.  Unlisted factors may present significant additional obstacles to the realization of forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements included herein are made as of the date hereof, and Aridis does not undertake any obligation to update publicly such statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

Contact:
Tiberend Strategic Advisors, Inc.

Jonathon Brzezinski, Ph.D. (Investors)
(212) 375-2681
[email protected]

David Schemelia (Media)
(212) 375-2686
[email protected]

SOURCE Aridis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.