SIGA Appoints Dr. Eric A. Rose Chairman of the Board, Will Become CEO on March 1, 2007
Wednesday January 31, 2:30 pm ET
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SIGA Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: SIGA - News) announced today that Eric A. Rose, M.D., was elected Chairman of the Company's Board of Directors at a meeting of the Board on January 25, 2007. On March 1, 2007, Dr. Rose will be taking leave from Columbia University and will become the Chief Executive Officer of SIGA. Dr. Rose has been a member of SIGA's Board since April 2001. He had also previously served as Interim CEO from April 19, 2001, through June 22, 2001. Dr. Rose succeeds Donald G. Drapkin as Chairman of the Board. Mr. Drapkin will continue to serve the Company as a Board member. Dr. Rose is currently Chairman of the Department of Surgery and Surgeon-in-Chief of the Columbia Presbyterian Center of New York Presbyterian Hospital, a position he has held since August 1994. Dr. Rose is a past President of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation. Dr. Rose is also Morris & Rose Millstein Professor of Surgery at Columbia University's College of Physicians and Surgeons' Department of Surgery. Dr. Rose also serves as a Director of Nephros, Inc., PharmaCore, Inc., TransTech Pharma, Inc. and Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. Dr. Rose is a graduate of both Columbia College and the Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons. In addition to his new roles at SIGA, Dr. Rose will become Executive Vice President - Life Sciences at MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings Inc., a SIGA shareholder.
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Former Chairman, Donald G. Drapkin, said, "Dr. Rose has agreed to become CEO of SIGA at an important time for our Company. As a director Eric made major contributions to the success of the Company's smallpox anti-viral, SIGA-246, and now, as CEO, we believe that he will be instrumental in the regulatory approval and eventual commercialization of the drug."
Dr. Rose said, "I'm excited by the great potential of our smallpox anti-viral SIGA-246. We are confident that SIGA-246 will become a major contributor in the battle against potential biological terrorism. I look forward to working with our Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Dennis Hruby, and his team in completing the development and approval of SIGA-246 and moving forward the development of our other product candidates."
In recent months, the Company has announced steady progress in both clinical development and receipt of government commitments to further fund the development of SIGA-246. In the clinic, the drug successfully completed its initial human safety trial. In a primate trial, the drug demonstrated complete prevention of smallpox disease. In two additional primate trials, SIGA-246 afforded complete protection against the monkeypox virus, a closely related disease that is even more virulent in that species. SIGA has also announced the receipt of over $20 million in additional grants from the National Institutes of Health to fund future SIGA-246 activities and advances in other drug programs. |
