NEW HAVEN, Conn., Nov. 19, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via PRWEB - The Board of Directors of Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Limited (d/b/a Biohaven) is pleased to announce the election of Vlad Coric, M.D. as Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Coric has had a distinguished academic and pharmaceutical career with more than 15 years of drug discovery and clinical development experience at Yale University School of Medicine and Bristol-Myers Squibb.
Within the pharmaceutical industry, Dr. Coric has worked across therapeutic areas including neuroscience, oncology, immuno-oncology and virology. He has been involved in multiple research and development programs including marketed drugs such as ABILIFY® (aripiprazole; partial dopamine agonist), OPDIVO® (nivolumab; anti-PD1), YERVOY® (Ipilimumab; anti-CTLA-4), DAKLINZA® (daclatasvir; NS5A inhibitor) and SUNVEPRA® (asunaprevir; NS3 inhibitor). Most recently at Bristol-Myers Squibb, Dr. Coric was the Neuro-Oncology Indication Lead for Immuno-Oncology where he spearheaded the design of and led the first global registrational trial using checkpoint inhibitors in glioblastoma. As an Associate Clinical Professor at Yale, he served as Chief of the Yale Clinical Neuroscience Research Unit, managing innovative research trials for patients with treatment-refractory illnesses. He has published widely with more than 50 peer-reviewed publications and numerous presentations at scientific meetings. Dr. Coric was the also first to report the therapeutic effects of the glutamate-modulating agent riluzole in neuropsychiatric disorders and led the first clinical trial employing cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers to identity and enrich for patients with Prodromal Alzheimer's Disease while at Bristol-Myers Squibb.
Declan Doogan M.D. Chairman of Biohaven stated, "On behalf of Biohaven, I am delighted to make this appointment. Vlad is a significant figure in the fields of neuroscience research and drug development. His entrepreneurial and drug development credentials make him an ideal candidate to build Biohaven into a premier company in the glutamatergic space."
Dr. Coric commented, "It is a privilege to join the Biohaven team -- this represents the culmination of many years of research combining my work in the glutamatergic system with broad drug development experience. I have been extremely fortunate to be part of highly effective and innovative research teams at both Yale and Bristol-Myers Squib. I look forward to helping Biohaven bring innovative treatments to patients suffering from treatment-resistant disorders."
Drugs that modulate glutamate neurotransmission have therapeutic application in numerous diseases where aberrations in glutamate function have been implicated, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), spinocerebellar ataxia, Alzheimer's disease, neurodevelopmental disorders, cancer, anxiety disorders and treatment resistant- depression.
"Over the near term, Biohaven's focus will be to quickly advance our late stage glutamate modulating agents into the clinic and then expand with additional potential indications across disease states including some orphan illnesses. Rather than focus on one illness, we will leverage our expertise in the glutamatergic system and follow the science across diseases where there is a strong mechanistic basis for modulation of this important system," Dr. Coric added.
Dr. Coric completed his internship at Yale-New Haven Hospital and his residency and fellowship training in the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine. Dr. Coric earned his medical degree at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in North Carolina and his undergraduate Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Connecticut where he was an Honors Scholar in Physiology and Neurobiology. He also has previous entrepreneurial experience founding multiple businesses, and has been in involved in professional activities including serving as President of the Connecticut Psychiatric Society (an 800-member district branch of the American Psychiatric Association).
About Biohaven
Biohaven is a privately-held biopharmaceutical company engaged in the identification and development of clinical stage compounds targeting the glutamatergic system. The company has licensed intellectual property from Yale University and Massachusetts General Hospital. Biohaven is owned by a group of investors including Portage Biotech Inc. (OTC Market: PTGEF, Canadian Securities Exchange: PBT.U), Yale University and other private investors. The company's first drug candidate, BHV-0223, is a novel formulation of a glutamate-modulating agent, being developed under FDA 505(b)(2) guidelines. BHV-4157, a prodrug form of the same glutamate modulating agent, is being developed as a New Chemical Entity (NCE). The FDA cleared the company's Investigational New Drug application (IND) in August 2015 and BIOHAVEN has completed a PK study in humans with the final study report expected by 4Q2015 to enable the Phase 2/3 start in 2016. The company plans to advance other glutamatergic approaches and is actively exploring licenses for additional compounds.
For further information, contact Dr. Declan Doogan, the Chairman at Declan.doogan(at)biohavenpharma(dot)com.
Forward-Looking Statements
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