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STRASBOURG, FRANCE - February
28, 2006 - Faust Pharmaceuticals S.A., a privately-held clinical stage
company with expertise in neurotransmitter modulation, today announced that
Thomas C. Seoh has been appointed the company's Chief Executive Officer. Mr.
Seoh, 48, succeeds Pascal Neuville, Ph.D., the Company's Chief Scientific
Officer, who had been serving as the company's interim Chief Executive
Officer.
"Thomas brings Faust experience in company building, corporate, business and commercial development, fundraising, legal management, and strategic planning, including specific experience building an emerging public neuroscience company, in the U.S.," said Bernard Gilly, Chairman of the Board of Faust. "His broad range of skills and experience will be instrumental in taking Faust to the next level and we are delighted to welcome his arrival.
"I also want to thank Pascal for
his valuable contributions as interim Chief Executive Officer," continued Mr.
Gilly. "Our board very much looks forward to the leadership of Thomas, Pascal,
Laura Bossi, M.D., the company's Chief Medical Officer, and the rest of the
Faust team as they work to build the company into a neuroscience leader."
From 1995 to 2005, Mr. Seoh was
with Guilford Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (now part of MGI Pharma, Inc. of
Bloomington, Minnesota, U.S.A.), a public biopharmaceutical company focused on
central nervous system, oncology and cardiovascular therapeutics based in
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.A., most recently as Senior Vice President, Corporate
and Commercial Development, and previously as Vice President, General Counsel
and Secretary. During his tenure, Mr. Seoh participated in the raising of
approximately USD 400 million in the capital markets and from corporate
partners. Deals in which he led in a business or legal capacity included the
acquisition from Merck of the U.S. rights to a GPIIb/IIIa receptor antagonist
for Acute Coronary Syndrome, the out-licensing to Pfizer of a small molecule
pre-synaptic glutamate inhibitor program targeting diseases such as
neuropathic pain, diabetic and chemotherapy-induced neuropathy and prostate
cancer, the out-licensing to Rhône-Poulenc Rorer, and the later reacquisition
from Aventis, of a biodegradable polymer wafer incorporating a
chemotherapeutic for malignant glioma, the out-licensing to Amgen of small
molecules for the regeneration and protection of nerves, initially targeting
Parkinson's disease, and the in-licensing of a water soluble pro-drug
injection of propofol.
Prior to Guilford, Mr. Seoh occupied legal management positions, including Vice President and Associate General Counsel, with the ICN Pharmaceuticals group of companies in Costa Mesa, California (now Valeant Pharmaceuticals International). Previously, he was General Counsel and Secretary of Consolidated Press U.S., Inc. in Livonia, Michigan, and a corporate attorney in the New York and London offices of Lord Day & Lord, Barrett Smith, focusing on mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and securities laws.
Mr. Seoh earned his A.B. and J.D.
degrees from Harvard University. He currently also serves on the Board of
Directors of Arbios Systems, Inc., based near Boston (Massachusetts) and in
Los Angeles.
About Faust
Pharmaceuticals:
www.faustpharma.com
Faust Pharmaceuticals S.A. is a
privately-held 35 person clinical stage product company. Based in Strasbourg,
France, it focuses on therapeutics for central nervous system diseases. The
company's lead compound, FP0011, is a glutamate inhibitor in Phase II
targeting conditions such as Parkinson's disease, ALS and migraine. The
Company's second lead compound, FP0023, is an utrophin inducer in preparation
to enter Phase I targeting Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. In addition, the
company has pre-clinical programs in targets such as mGluR and A3, and a
proprietary research engine for selectively identifying ligands of G
protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), particularly for major neurological
applications.
Faust's lead investors include Sofinnova Partners, Auriga Partners, Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners (ERIP), Siparex Ventures, AGF Private Equity and FCJE (Fonds de co-investissement des Jeunes Entreprises).
For more information, please
contact:
Andrew Lloyd / Heidi Thompson
Tel: +44 1273 675100
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