RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., Aug. 9, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tranzyme Pharma (Nasdaq:TZYM), today announced that David Moore has joined the Company as Vice President, Commercial Operations, a newly created management position. In this role, Mr. Moore will be responsible for market development-related activities for Tranzyme's advanced drug candidates, ulimorelin and TZP-102, including designing and executing the company's global product strategy.
Mr. Moore began his pharmaceutical career with Ortho-McNeil Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a member of the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies, where he held positions of increasing responsibility, most recently as group director of the company's pain franchise. He received his B.S. in biology from Towson University and his MBA in marketing from Lehigh University, and recently completed a second graduate degree in Health Policy from Thomas Jefferson University.
Tranzyme Pharma also has named Kenneth Ruettimann, Ph.D., to the newly created position of Senior Director, Manufacturing Operations to manage the chemical and pharmaceutical development strategies for the Company's drug candidates. Prior to joining Tranzyme, Dr. Ruettimann served as Senior Director, API Manufacturing at Inspire Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company acquired by Merck in May of this year. Before Inspire, he had held various positions within development and manufacturing at Pfizer, Pharmacia, Searle and Monsanto. Dr. Ruettimann earned his B.S. in chemical engineering from Virginia Tech, and his M.S. and Ph.D. from Purdue University.
"We are pleased to welcome Dave and Ken to Tranzyme Pharma as we continue advancing our product candidates through late-stage development," said Vipin K. Garg, Ph.D., President and CEO of Tranzyme. "Together, Dave and Ken bring more than 30 years of collective industry experience from some of the leading companies within pharmaceuticals to Tranzyme. Both will be extremely valuable as we prepare to transition into a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company."
About Tranzyme Pharma
Tranzyme Pharma is a late-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing novel, mechanism-based therapeutics for the treatment of upper gastrointestinal (GI) motility disorders. While approximately 20 percent of adults worldwide are affected by these persistent and recurring conditions which disrupt the normal movement of food throughout the GI tract, currently there are a limited number of safe and effective treatment options. Tranzyme is developing an intravenous drug, ulimorelin, for patients in acute (hospital-based) settings, as well as an oral drug (TZP-102) for chronic conditions. Ulimorelin is currently in Phase 3 clinical trials and TZP-102 is entering Phase 2b. Together these product candidates target a significant underserved market. By leveraging its proprietary drug discovery technology, Tranzyme is committed to pursuing first-in-class medicines to address areas of significant unmet medical needs.
Tranzyme has two strategic partnerships in place: a license agreement with Norgine B.V. for the co-development and commercialization of ulimorelin in Europe and other select territories, and a technology collaboration with Bristol-Myers Squibb Company focused on the identification and optimization of novel drug compounds for certain targets of interest to BMS.
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Further information about Tranzyme Pharma can be found on the Company's web site at www.tranzyme.com.