Aldridge quits Peplin
Tuesday, 19 August, 2008
US-incorporated biotech Peplin (ASX: PLI) has appointed BIO pioneer Tom Wiggans as CEO, replacing Michael Aldridge.
Wiggans, a former CEO of dermatology company Connetics, is also chairman of Peplin’s board of directors and will continue in that role.
Wiggans served on the board of directors of the US-based Biotechnology Industry Organisation (BIO) for 10 years.
Dr Eugene Bauer has been appointed both president and chief medical officer of the company, which recently re-incorporated in the US. Bauer served as CEO of Neosil Corporation, which recently entered into a merger agreement with Peplin.
Bauer will assume responsibility for the company’s medical affairs and strategies.
Peplin has also arranged to raise around $24 million in capital via a private share placement.
The money will primarily go towards funding of Phase III clinical trials of the company's PEP005 formulation.
PEP005 is an ingenol mebutate, intended as a treatment for actinic keratosis, a common pre-cancerous skin lesion.
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