Tim Mayleben Named President And CEO Of Esperion Therapeutics

PLYMOUTH, Mich., Jan 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Esperion Therapeutics, the leading developer of small molecule therapies for the treatment of cardiometabolic disorders, today announced that Tim Mayleben has been named president and CEO of the company.  Roger Newton, Ph.D., FAHA, who is the founder of Esperion and has been serving as its president and CEO, will become executive chairman and chief scientific officer.

Most recently, Mr. Mayleben was president and CEO at Aastrom Biosciences.  Previously, he was an advisor to life science and healthcare companies through his advisory and investment firm, ElMa Advisors, president, COO and a director of NightHawk Radiology, and chief operating officer and CFO of the original Esperion Therapeutics, which Dr. Newton also founded.  While at Esperion, Mr. Mayleben raised more than $200 million in venture and institutional equity capital and negotiated the sale of Esperion to Pfizer for $1.3 billion in February 2004.

"We've made tremendous progress with ETC-1002, our novel small molecule LDL-C lowering therapy for treating statin-intolerant and statin-resistant patients.  I'm excited that Tim is re-joining me at the new Esperion.  He's the ideal person to help guide Esperion through the next phases of our growth and development.  At the original Esperion, Tim's outstanding business acumen and judgment played a critical role in our success at every stage.  We are very pleased that he will be joining us as our president and CEO," said Dr. Newton.

Esperion's most advanced product candidate, ETC-1002, is in Phase 2 clinical trials for patients with hypercholesterolemia and other cardiometabolic risk factors.  ETC-1002 is a small-molecule metabolic regulator of imbalances in lipid and carbohydrate metabolism and inflammation.  It is being developed to address the underlying causes of metabolic diseases and reduce multiple risk factors associated with them.  In preclinical and clinical studies to date, treatment with ETC-1002 has been shown to be safe and well-tolerated while producing statin-like reductions in LDL-C and inflammatory markers. 

"Under Roger's leadership, the development of Esperion's lead compound ETC-1002 has advanced rapidly and shown tremendous clinical and therapeutic potential.  I am excited to be working with Roger again and look forward to helping the Esperion team realize the full potential of ETC-1002 and our broader portfolio of lipid-regulating therapies to treat cardiometabolic diseases. I share their passion and commitment to this important therapeutic area and believe the next few years will be a very exciting and rewarding time for Esperion," Mr. Mayleben said.

About Esperion Therapeutics

Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. discovers and develops novel therapies for the treatment of cardiometabolic diseases. The company's lead product candidate, ETC-1002, is an AMP kinase activator and ATP citrate lyase inhibitor that is being evaluated in multiple Phase 2 clinical trials for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia and other cardiometabolic risk factors.  Esperion intends to commercialize innovative, first-in-class therapies focused on enhancing lipid regulation, addressing statin intolerance and improving overall cardiometabolic health. For more information, please visit www.esperion.com.

SOURCE Esperion Therapeutics