Diffusion Pharmaceuticals Names Director Dr. Robert Cobuzzi as President and Chief Executive Officer
September 08 2020 - 3:02PM
Diffusion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: DFFN)
(“Diffusion” or “the Company”), today announced that Robert
(“Bob”) J. Cobuzzi Jr., Ph.D., who has served as a member of the
Company’s Board of Directors since January 2020, will
succeed David G. Kalergis as President and Chief
Executive Officer effective immediately. Mr. Kalergis will
retire from his operational responsibilities but continue to serve
as Chairman of the Board.
Dr. Cobuzzi is an accomplished pharmaceutical
executive with significant and successful experience in the areas
of drug development, business development and operational
leadership across multiple therapeutic areas. Since joining the
Diffusion board in January 2020, Bob has immersed himself in the
science and development of Diffusion’s lead-product candidate,
trans sodium crocetinate (“TSC”), providing significant support to
management as the Chairman of the Science and Technology
Committee.
"Bob is uniquely qualified to
lead Diffusion as it expands efforts to develop TSC for
life-threatening medical conditions where the body has a decreased
ability to deliver oxygen to the areas where it is needed most,"
said David Kalergis, Diffusion's Chairman. "His deep
leadership expertise and broad industry experience make him the
ideal leader to drive product development and Company
growth."
"I am honored to build on David’s legacy and
excited to lead Diffusion into its next phase of
development. I believe Diffusion has a significant
opportunity with TSC to develop a unique and clinically meaningful
asset that we believe will address an unmet medical need and create
shareholder value," said Dr. Cobuzzi. "I would like to thank David
and the Board for the opportunity to serve Diffusion, its
patients and its shareholders."
David G. Kalergis has retired as president and
chief executive officer of the Company but will continue to serve
as chairman of the board of the Company. “It has been a tremendous
privilege, first to work with Dr. John Gainer on the development of
TSC, and then to work with the entire Diffusion team to bring this
exciting new drug to its current inflection point,” said Mr.
Kalergis. “Speaking on behalf of the entire board, we welcome Bob
as president and CEO.”
Dr. Cobuzzi has 25 years of cross-functional
leadership experience in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology
industries. He currently serves as a Venture Partner and chairman
of the Business Development Board of Sunstone Life Sciences
Ventures. From 2005 until 2018, Dr. Cobuzzi held senior
leadership roles with Endo International PLC (Nasdaq: ENDP), most
recently as President of Endo Ventures Ltd. headquartered in
Dublin, Ireland. Prior to joining Endo, Dr. Cobuzzi’s experience
included significant scientific licensing, regulatory, and clinical
program experience with Adolor Corporation, Centocor Inc., and
AstraMerck, Inc./Astra Pharmaceuticals LP. Dr. Cobuzzi graduated
from Colby College with an A.B. in Biochemistry and Art History,
received his Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry from
Loyola University Chicago and completed a post-doctoral fellowship
in Experimental Therapeutics at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer
Center in Buffalo, New York.
About Diffusion Pharmaceuticals
Inc.
Diffusion Pharmaceuticals Inc. is an innovative
biotechnology company developing new treatments that improve the
body’s ability to deliver oxygen to the areas where it is needed
most, offering new hope for the treatment of life-threatening
medical conditions. Diffusion’s lead drug TSC was originally
developed in conjunction with the United States (“U.S.”) Office of
Naval Research, which was seeking a way to treat multiple organ
failure and its resulting mortality caused by low oxygen levels
from blood loss on the battlefield. Evolutions in research have led
to Diffusion’s focus today on addressing some of medicine’s most
intractable and difficult-to-treat diseases, including multiple
organ failure from respiratory distress, stroke and glioblastoma
multiforme (“GBM”) brain cancer. In each of these diseases, lack of
available oxygen presents a significant obstacle for medical
providers and is the target for TSC’s novel mechanism. The Company
is currently partnering with U.S. and European institutions on an
expedited research program to develop TSC as a treatment for the
low oxygen levels and associated multiple organ failure in COVID-19
patients.
Preclinical data support the potential for TSC
as a treatment for other conditions where low oxygen availability
plays an important role, such as myocardial infarction, peripheral
artery disease and neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s
and Parkinson’s disease. In addition to the development of TSC,
RES-529, the Company’s PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway inhibitor that
dissociates the mTORC1 and mTORC2 complexes, is in preclinical
testing for GBM.
Diffusion is headquartered in Charlottesville,
Virginia – a hub of advancement in the life science and
biopharmaceutical industries.
Forward-Looking Statements
To the extent any statements made in this news
release deal with information that is not historical, these are
forward-looking statements under the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include, but are not limited
to, statements about the company's plans, objectives, expectations
and intentions with respect to future operations and products, the
potential of the company's technology and product candidates, and
other statements that are not historical in nature, particularly
those that utilize terminology such as "would," "will," "plans,"
"possibility," "potential," "future," "expects," "anticipates,"
"believes," "intends," "continue," "expects," other words of
similar meaning, derivations of such words and the use of future
dates. Forward-looking statements by their nature address matters
that are, to different degrees, uncertain. Uncertainties and risks
may cause the Diffusion’s actual results to be materially different
than those expressed in or implied by such forward-looking
statements. Particular uncertainties and risks include: the
ability to develop TSC to address an unmet medical need and create
shareholder value including, without limitation, with respect to
the treatment of COVID-19 patients; and the various risk factors
(many of which are beyond Diffusion’s control) as described under
the heading “Risk Factors” in Diffusion’s filings with the United
States Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking
statements in this news release speak only as of the date of this
news release and are based on management's current beliefs and
expectations. Diffusion undertakes no obligation to update or
revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
Contacts:Robert Cobuzzi, Ph.D.,
CEODiffusion Pharmaceuticals Inc.(434)
220-0718rcobuzzi@diffusionpharma.com
LHA Investor RelationsKim Sutton Golodetz(212)
838-3777kgolodetz@lhai.com
Media Contact:Jeffrey
FreedmanRooneyPartners646-432-0191jfreedman@rooneyco.com
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