March 9 /CNW/ - Integrative Proteomics, Inc., a leader in the determination of protein function and structure to accelerate the discovery of new medicines, announced today that Dr. John D. Mendlein, former senior executive of Aurora Biosciences Corporation, has been named Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.
Dr. Tak Mak, Director of the Amgen Institute and Professor of Immunology and Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto said of Dr. Mendlein's appointment "John brings to IPI a strong track record of success in the creation of innovative business opportunities using his industry experience in business, science and intellectual property. He will be invaluable in advancing IPI's leadership role in drug discovery."
"IPI's Pharmaceutical Proteomics(TM) Platform represents a unique approach in the industry for drug discovery," Dr. Mendlein stated. "IPI uses a proprietary combination of technologies, including mass spectroscopy, NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography developed by the Company's preeminent scientific Founders, Drs. Cheryl Arrowsmith, Aled Edwards, and Jack Greenblatt. IPI is the first company to create a single integrated platform that rapidly produces and interrogates recombinant proteins for therapeutic relevance, druggability, and use as structural guides for lead optimization."
Dr. Aled Edwards, founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Integrative Proteomics (IPI), stated that Dr. Mendlein's appointment "assures that IPI will deploy its proprietary Pharmaceutical Proteomics(TM) Platform in multiple areas of important commercial relevance."
An executive with more than fifteen years experience in the biotechnology industry, Dr. Mendlein most recently served as Chief Knowledge Officer, Senior Vice President, Intellectual Property and General Counsel of Aurora Biosciences Corporation (NASDAQ: ABSC - news). He was appointed to the Aurora Biosciences Board in November 2000. Prior to joining Aurora in 1996, Dr. Mendlein worked with the firm of Cooley Godward, focusing on biotechnology transactions, intellectual property and litigation. He was a Doctoral Trainee at Smith, Kline and French Pharmaceuticals, in the Department of Molecular Genetics, and received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles for his work on the biochemistry of the H+/K+ ATPase, and his J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of Law.
IPI accelerates the discovery of new medicines using its Pharmaceutical Proteomics(TM) Platform. Its ProteoWorks(TM) Platform for rapid, parallel production of recombinant proteins uses proprietary protein expression and purification processes based upon the Company's unique integration of molecular biology and mass spectroscopy. The ProteoWorks(TM) Platform has eliminated many of the bottlenecks associated with conventional protein production. IPI's ProteoActive(TM) Platform discovers protein-protein interactions using a proprietary system based on mass spectroscopy. The resulting information about protein function and therapeutic relevance is compiled in a proprietary database that is used to prioritize targets for drug discovery. The Company's ProteoVision(TM) Platform uses proprietary NMR and X- ray crystallography systems to accelerate the determination of protein structure to guide small molecule design and library selection, hit selection and lead optimization.
IPI has 45 employees, 70 percent of whom hold advanced degrees. The Company is located in Toronto, Canada and plans to open a U.S. site in the first half of 2001. Investors include the Canadian based venture firm of CC Capital Partners and Lombard Odier of Switzerland.
For further information
Dr. John D. Mendlein, Chairman and CEO, (416) 645-6611, FAX (416) 598-1262, jmendlein@integrativeproteomics.com |
