The Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance), a
not-for-profit product development partnership accelerating the
discovery and development of new drugs to fight tuberculosis (TB),
today announced the appointment of Dr. Jerome Premmereur as President
and Chief Executive Officer.
Dr. Premmereur is the former Vice President of Medical Risk
Management and former Vice President of U.S. Medical Affairs, both at
sanofi-aventis, as well as former Senior Vice President of Aventis
Global Medical Affairs.
"As we move closer to our goal of developing lifesaving new TB
treatments, the TB Alliance is pleased to appoint a leader who will
continue our momentum, strengthen and expand the largest TB drug
pipeline in history, and help realize our mission of saving millions
of lives lost needlessly to this disease," said Dr. Gijs Elzinga,
Chairman of the Board of the TB Alliance.
"We believe Dr. Premmereur´s drug development experience, his
understanding of the international regulatory environment and his
ability to lead a team of top scientists and policy experts make him
the clear choice to guide us to success," he said.
Dr. Elzinga added that Dr. Premmereur´s knowledge of the
pharmaceutical industry, gained from two decades working in the sector
here and in France, would be extremely useful in managing the TB
Alliance´s existing pharmaceutical partnerships, and forging new ones.
"This is a position that will require me to apply everything I
have learned over the last 30 years of drug development and business
development, and I could not think of a more important way to use my
skills," Dr. Premmereur said. "I understand the gravity of our mission
and the hurdles we face, and I look forward to working with one of the
best teams in the world to meet this challenge."
Dr. Elzinga noted that the TB Alliance, under the leadership of
outgoing President and CEO Dr. Maria C. Freire and the scientific
direction of Research and Development Director Dr. Mel Spigelman, has
become the international catalyst for new TB drug development, thanks
to a network of global partners, a diverse team of top professionals,
and funding of close to $200 million from foundations and governments
around the world.
Dr. Premmereur thanked his predecessor Dr. Freire, who is leaving
the post after six years with the TB Alliance to become President of
the Albert and Mary Lasker Foundation.
"Tremendous progress has been made in the search for new TB drugs
since the TB Alliance was founded in 2000," Dr. Premmereur said.
"People throughout the world are looking to us to replace the current,
decades-old, cumbersome regimen. I am confident that we will succeed;
millions of lives depend on it."
Every year, more than 1.6 million people worldwide die from TB. It
is estimated that the bacillus that causes TB infects one-third of the
world´s population and the threat of drug-resistance is growing at an
alarming rate. New, faster-acting, simpler drug regimens are critical
to defeating this ancient disease.
Dr. Premmereur, 53, has focused much of his career on development
of drugs for cardiovascular, thrombotic, cancer, metabolic and
infectious diseases.
In addition to drug development, Dr Premmereur has significant
international regulatory expertise and knowledge of the registration
path for new drugs in at least 60 countries. He has managed a team of
more than 500 in the United States, and practiced as a board-certified
cardiologist in France.
About the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development
The TB Alliance is a not-for-profit, product development
partnership accelerating the discovery and development of new TB drugs
that will shorten treatment, be effective against susceptible and
resistant strains, be compatible with antiretroviral therapies for
those HIV-TB patients currently on such therapies, and improve
treatment of latent infection.
Working with public and private partners worldwide, the TB
Alliance is leading the development of the most comprehensive
portfolio of TB drug candidates in history, and is committed to
ensuring that approved new regimens are affordable, adopted and
available to those who need them.
The TB Alliance operates with funding from the Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation, Irish Aid, the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign
Affairs (DGIS), the United Kingdom Department for International
Development (DFID), and the United States Agency for International
Development (USAID) and in-kind support from the National Institute
for Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID). For more information on
TB drug development and the TB Alliance, please visit
www.tballiance.org.
