Celtaxsys Restructures, Enhances Operational Focus

ATLANTA, Sept. 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Celtaxsys, Inc., an Atlanta-based pharmaceutical discovery and development company, announced today that it has restructured its management and operations to focus on development of its lead clinical stage drug candidate, CTX-4430, for treatment of Cystic Fibrosis (CF) lung disease.

As part of the restructuring, Dr. Michael Hanley has retired from his role as CEO and Chairman, and Dr. Brett Premack has stepped down as CTO.  Dr. H. Daniel Perez, a member of the Celtaxsys Board and former CEO of Berlex Biosciences and Presidio Pharmaceuticals, is serving as Chairman.

"We thank Dr. Hanley for his services as CEO and Chairman. Under his guidance, Celtaxsys has transformed into an exciting drug development company with a promising lead compound," said Dr. Perez.

In conjunction with these management changes, Celtaxsys is strengthening its clinical operations including bringing on Ed Philpot, MD, MBA, as CMO. Dr. Philpot has been serving as chair of the Medical Advisory Panel for the CTX-4430 development program for the past year and was formerly CMO at Smith & Nephew and prior to that Executive Director of Pulmonary Disease and Immuno-Inflammation at GSK, where he led several late stage clinical development programs. Celtaxsys has also expanded its internal Quality Assurance and Clinical Operations with additional key hires.

"We're excited to be able to bring more top talent into Celtaxsys," said Mike Masters, Celtaxsys Board Member. "As we continue to meet our clinical milestones, these changes demonstrate our strong support for the company and its programs".

About Cystic Fibrosis: Cystic Fibrosis is the most common life-shortening autosomal recessive disease among Caucasians, and lung disease is the leading cause of hospitalizations and death in adult CF patients. A hallmark of CF lung disease is excessive recruitment of blood polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) into the small airways (bronchioles) causing inflammation that results in elastic tissue destruction and progressive loss of lung function.

About CTX-4430: CTX-4430 is a once-daily oral drug candidate currently undergoing clinical trials for treatment of CF lung disease. It is a novel small molecule inhibitor of Leukotriene A4 Hydrolase (LTA4H), the key enzyme in production of the potent inflammatory mediator Leukotriene B4 (LTB4). LTA4H and LTB4 are strongly implicated in the pathogenesis of pulmonary inflammation in CF.

About Celtaxsys: Celtaxsys is a privately-held clinical stage drug discovery and development company focused on developing new treatments for inflammatory diseases by modulating innate immunity. The company is building a pipeline of first-in-class drugs with novel mechanisms of action. For more information, please visit www.celtaxsys.com.

SOURCE Celtaxsys