BioDuro Strengthens Senior Leadership of Global CMC Solutions Business Unit

— New VP of Pharmaceutics & Executive Director of Quality Add 45 Years of Scientific and Quality Experience —

SAN DIEGO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–BioDuro, LLC, a leading drug discovery and development services organization, announced today the appointment of two senior leadership positions to the Global CMC Solutions business unit: Firouz Asgarzadeh, PhD as Vice President of Pharmaceutics and Mindy Weir as Executive Director Quality.

“BioDuro is a pioneer in development and manufacturing of formulations to enhance solubility and bioavailability of poorly soluble molecules; these key leadership additions are an essential part of our overall strategy to expand our legacy of scientific rigor and customer focus,” said Kent Payne, PhD, President of BioDuro Global CMC Solutions, LLC. “The addition of Mindy and Firouz, provide BioDuro highly experienced leaders who will implement lean systems for management needed to maintain operational quality at scale, while keeping the spirit of scientific innovation that is at our core.”

Dr. Firouz Asgarzadeh, Vice President, Pharmaceutics

Firouz will be responsible for the scientific leadership and management of the Pharmaceutics division, as well as providing thought leadership and solutions to client programs. Firouz brings more than 25 years of global R&D leadership and experience in pharmaceutical formulation development, controlled release coating, solubility enhancement (Melt Extrusion and Spray-Drying), injectable sustained release dosage product development, polymer synthesis and polymer processing. Prior to joining BioDuro, Firouz held senior positions at Evonik, Merck (Schering Plough) and Catalent Pharma Solutions (Cardinal Health); in those positions, he built a strong record and first-hand experience for improving bioavailability of poorly soluble and poorly permeable APIs, and enabling clinical trials.

“BioDuro has incredibly strong formulation development expertise, but has also linked that to an equally strong inhouse discovery and DMPK groups; I don’t know of another service provider that has been able to do that successfully,” said Firouz Asgarzadeh, PhD, Vice President, Pharmaceutics at BioDuro. “This combination allows us to accelerate development of partner programs by tackling bioavailability challenges early on, using solubility and permeability-enhancement techniques and in-vivo PK data that my team will continue to advance into the next generation of pharmaceutical products.”

Mindy Weir, Executive Director, Quality

Mindy will provide leadership and oversight of Quality for BioDuro’s Global CMC Solutions business, including all Quality Assurance and Quality Control programs. Mindy brings 20+ years of experience in Pharmaceutical Quality/CMC. Prior to joining BioDuro, Mindy held leadership positions at Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Santarus, Prometheus Laboratories, and Catalent Pharma Solutions (Cardinal Health); in those positions, she developed and implemented quality systems which exceeded ICH Q10 standards as well as ensured gold-standard manufacturing/testing of pharmaceutical drug product and API for hundreds of programs.

“Quality is everyone’s responsibility, and at BioDuro, that commitment from top to bottom has been evident from the day I started,” said Mindy Weir, Executive Director, Quality. “My team is building upon that commitment by creating and implementing the quality processes and systems that are now needed for a scaled operation to deliver ‘right first time’ and always with a high degree of compliance and proper oversight.”

About BioDuro

BioDuro, an Advent International portfolio company, is a leading global life sciences research and development organization that provides biopharmaceutical clients and partners with comprehensive, fully integrated drug discovery and development services, from lead development and IND-enabling studies to GMP manufacture of drug product for clinical trials. Core expertise includes small and large molecule discovery, development and scale up, combined with unique technology platforms such as bioavailability enhancement of insoluble compounds. The company has 4 global sites: headquarters in San Diego, California and 3 major operations in Beijing, Shanghai and Jiangsu, China. BioDuro’s integrated China and US teams afford partners with the benefits of a truly global and seamless operation, significantly accelerating discovery and de-risking development to create higher value outcomes. For more information, visit www.bioduro.com.

About Advent International

Founded in 1984, Advent International is one of the largest and most experienced global private equity investors. The firm has invested in over 340 private equity transactions in 41 countries and as of September 30, 2018 it had $39 billion in assets under management. With offices on four continents, Advent has established a globally integrated team of more than 190 investment professionals across North America, Europe, Latin America and Asia. The firm focuses on investments in five core sectors: including business and financial services, healthcare, industrial, retail, consumer and leisure, and technology, media and telecom. After more than 30 years dedicated to international investing, Advent remains committed to partnering with management teams to deliver sustained revenue and earnings growth for its portfolio companies. For more information, visit www.adventinternational.com.

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