Lumos Pharma Appoints David M. Weiner, M.D. as Chief Medical Officer
Austin, Texas – April 13, 2016 – Lumos Pharma, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on bringing novel therapies to patients with unmet medical needs in severe, rare, and genetic diseases, announced that David M. Weiner, M.D. has joined the company as its Chief Medical Officer.
“Dave’s accomplishments in the pharmaceutical industry and extensive clinical experience will make him instrumental to the company’s success as we continue to develop our lead compound, LUM-001, for the treatment of Creatine Transporter Deficiency and the rest of the therapeutics in our pipeline,” said Rick Hawkins, founder and CEO of Lumos Pharma. “I am delighted to welcome Dave to the Lumos team.”
Dr. Weiner has more than twenty years of experience in the discovery and clinical development of novel therapeutics for neurological disease, and has held a number of senior executive roles at private and public biotechnology companies. He most recently served as Chief Medical Officer at aTyr Pharma, Inc., and, prior to that, he was the Chief Medical Officer and interim Chief Executive Officer of Proteostasis Therapeutics. Dr. Weiner served in key development roles over a five-year period at EMD/Merck Serono, and spent almost a decade serving in a series of discovery research and clinical development roles at Acadia Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
“I am excited to be joining Lumos Pharma at this important time in the company’s evolution as we prepare for our first formal meeting with the FDA, and continue to advance the development of our pipeline,” said Dr. Weiner.
Dr. Weiner’s clinical experience includes patient care and clinical teaching responsibilities at both the University of Vermont, and the University of California, San Diego. He trained in neurology at New York Hospital, Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital and Cornell Medical Center, after completing a medical internship at St. Vincent’s Hospital & Medical Center in New York, and receiving his M.D. from the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, SUNY at Buffalo. Dr. Weiner also serves on the Scientific Advisory Board of the Michael J. Fox Foundation.
“With the addition of Dr. Weiner, Lumos Pharma continues to build a formidable team that understands the rare disease space,” said Ed Mathers, Partner at NEA, and Lumos Board member. “Dr. Weiner’s impressive and extensive background makes him a perfect fit for the Lumos team. His clinical development expertise will play a key role in helping the company advance its goals and strategic priorities in 2016 and beyond.”
About Creatine Transporter Deficiency
CTD is a relatively new and rare disorder, initially described in 2001, and is thought to be the second most common cause of X- linked developmental disability after Fragile X Syndrome. Boys generally present with developmental disability, most profoundly affecting speech, having a seizure disorder, and behavioral issues. Many boys are
misdiagnosed with autism due to the clinical presentation.
LUM-001 has been granted orphan status in the US and is in preclinical development in partnership with scientists at the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), part of the National Institutes of Health, through its Therapeutic for Rare and Neglected Diseases program (TRND). This NCATS collaboration has helped advance the lead molecule LUM-001 as a clinical candidate by generating the data needed to file an investigational new drug application with the Food and Drug Administration.
About Lumos Pharma
Founded in 2011, Lumos Pharma is focused on bringing novel therapies to patients afflicted with unmet medical needs in severe, rare, and genetic diseases. Lumos Pharma is led by an experienced management team with longstanding experience in the rare disease space. Lumos Pharma’s lead compound is supported by the National Institutes of Health’s Therapeutics for Rare and Neglected Diseases (TRND) program.