17 Apr 2020 07:00
17 April 2020
4D pharma plc
(the "Company" or "4D")
Appointment of Non-Executive Chairperson
Leeds, UK - 4D pharma plc (AIM: DDDD), a pharmaceutical company leading the development of Live Biotherapeutics, today announces that Prof. Dr. med. Axel Glasmacher has been appointed as Non-Executive Chairperson of the Board, with immediate effect.
Prof. Dr. med. Axel Glasmacher joined the Board of 4D Pharma as a Non-Executive Director in January 2019. Previously, he was Senior Vice President and Head of the Global Clinical Research and Development Hematology Oncology at Celgene, where he worked in various global roles for more than ten years. His work at Celgene led to the approvals of Revlimid®, Idhifa®, and Vidaza® (haematological cancers). He also worked on the PD-L1 inhibitor durvalumab. Prior to Celgene, Professor Glasmacher worked within the fields of hematology-oncology at the University Hospital in Bonn.
David Norwood, the current Non-Executive Chairperson, will concurrently step down from this role but remains as a Non-Executive Director of 4D.
Prof. Dr. med Axel Glasmacher commented:
"4D is a company that has done excellent scientific and clinical work and is looking forward to important data readouts in the near future. I am honored to work with investors, the board and the team at 4D to bring live biotherapeutic agents to patients as soon as possible."
Duncan Peyton, Chief Executive Officer of 4D, commented:
"I am very pleased to report that Axel has taken up the position of Chairperson. Since joining 4D's Board of Directors, Axel has made a significant contribution to the development of the Company's strategy. In addition, his expertise and track record in Oncology is highly complementary to our focus going forward."
"I would also like to thank Dave Norwood for his significant contribution to 4D as Chairperson, a role he has held since the formation of the Company, and I look forward to continuing to work with him in his role as a Non-Executive Director."
Disclosures:
Details of Prof. Dr. med. Axel Glasmacher's current and past Directorships, as well as other information required under Schedule 2 paragraph (g) of the AIM Rules for Companies, were disclosed as part of his appointment as a Non-Executive Director of the Board on 8 January 2019. Since this disclosure, Prof. Dr. med. Glasmacher has taken up the following Directorships and roles:
· AG Life Science Consulting GmbH & Co. KG - incorporation now completed (was pending in January 2019);
· Glasmacher Verwaltungs-GmbH - incorporation now completed (was pending in January 2019);
· Member of the supervisory board of Ryvu Therapeutics, Poland; and
· Treasurer of the Belgian Cancer Drug Development Forum.
Further, Prof. Dr. med. Glasmacher is acting as liquidator of the Austrian Cancer Drug Development Forum.
About 4D
Founded in February 2014, 4D pharma is a world leader in the development of Live Biotherapeutics, a novel and emerging class of drugs, defined by the FDA as biological products that contain a live organism, such as a bacterium, that is applicable to the prevention, treatment or cure of a disease. 4D has developed a proprietary platform, MicroRx®, that rationally identifies Live Biotherapeutics based on a deep understanding of function and mechanism.
4D's Live Biotherapeutic Products are orally delivered single strains of bacteria that are naturally found in the healthy human gut. The Company has five clinical studies in progress, namely a Phase II clinical study of BLAUTIX® in Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), a Phase I/II study of MRx0518 in combination with KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) in solid tumours, a Phase I study of MRx0518 in a neoadjuvant setting for patients with solid tumours, a Phase I study of MRx0518 in patients with pancreatic cancer and a Phase I/II study of MRx-4DP0004 in asthma. Preclinical-stage programmes include candidates for CNS disease such as Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative conditions. The Company has a research collaboration with MSD, a tradename of Merck & Co., Inc., Kenilworth, NJ, USA, to discover and develop Live Biotherapeutics for vaccines.
For more information, refer to https://www.4dpharmaplc.com.
Contact Information:
4D
Duncan Peyton, Chief Executive Officer + 44 (0)113 895 0130
Investor Relations ir@4dpharmaplc.com
N+1 Singer - Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker +44 (0) 20 7496 3000
Aubrey Powell / Justin McKeegan / Alex Bond (Corporate Finance)
Tom Salvesen (Corporate Broking)
Bryan Garnier & Co. Limited - Joint Broker +44 (0)20 7332 2500
Dominic Wilson / Phil Walker
Image Box PR
Neil Hunter / Michelle Boxall
Tel +44 (0)20 8943 4685
neil@ibcomms.agency / michelle@ibcomms.agency