Dr. Coles assumes his new role at an important time as the company prepares to launch six clinical trials by the end of 2020 to advance its robust and diverse neuroscience pipeline
BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Cerevel Therapeutics, a company dedicated to unraveling the mysteries of the brain to treat neuroscience diseases, today announced the appointment of renowned biotechnology leader Tony Coles, M.D., as chief executive officer (CEO). Dr. Coles has been serving as executive chairperson of the board of directors since December 2018 and will retain this role in addition to his new duties. The appointment comes as the company prepares for key milestones in the advancement of the pipeline, continued team expansion and broader external engagement.
“Over the course of his distinguished career, Tony has earned a reputation as a bold and respected thought leader with a proven track record guiding life sciences companies through periods of transformational growth,” said Adam Koppel, M.D., Ph.D., managing director of Bain Capital Life Sciences and a member of the Board of Directors of Cerevel Therapeutics. “The board of directors were unanimous in our belief that given his track record of success, Tony was the right person to lead the organization as we aggressively pursue the development of transformative solutions to treat neuroscience diseases.”
“Going back to my early career as a practicing physician, my passions have always been focused on transforming the way medicine is practiced through the delivery of breakthrough therapies. At Cerevel Therapeutics, we have an opportunity to bring an unprecedented number of new medicines forward in the clinic to help address a number of unmet needs in treating neuroscience diseases,” said Dr. Coles. “If successful, Cerevel Therapeutics has the potential to profoundly impact more than 50 million under-served patients around the world. To achieve this goal, we have hand-selected a team of experienced leaders to tackle these difficult-to-treat diseases using new targets and novel therapies. I’m incredibly proud of how much the company has accomplished since its inception. I look forward to accelerating our pipeline with the initiation of six clinical trials by the end of 2020 and building the foundation to become a premier neuroscience company.”
About Tony Coles, M.D.
Dr. Coles joins Cerevel Therapeutics following a tenure as co-founder and CEO of Yumanity Therapeutics where he was instrumental in establishing and advancing a drug discovery platform based on live cell modeling that has resulted in three novel drug candidates for the potential treatment of Parkinson’s disease, related synuclein disorders and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease). Dr. Coles is a founding investor and continues to serve as executive chairperson of the Board of Directors of Yumanity Therapeutics.
Previously, Dr. Coles served as chairperson and chief executive officer of Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc., which was acquired by Amgen Inc. in 2013. Prior to Onyx, he was president, chief executive officer and a member of the Board of Directors of NPS Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Before joining NPS Pharmaceuticals, Dr. Coles was senior vice president of commercial operations at Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc., and earlier, held several executive positions at Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and positions of increasing responsibility at Merck & Co., Inc.
Dr. Coles currently serves on the Board of Directors of McKesson Corporation and Regeneron and is a member of the Board of Trustees for Johns Hopkins University. He is also a member of the Council for the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C.; a member of the Board of Trustees for The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City; a member of the Board of Directors of the Council on Foreign Relations, an independent, non-partisan membership organization, think tank and publisher; and a member of the Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows.
Dr. Coles was educated at Johns Hopkins University, earned a medical degree from Duke University, and a master’s degree in public health from Harvard University. He completed his cardiology and internal medicine training at Massachusetts General Hospital and was a research fellow at Harvard Medical School.
About Cerevel Therapeutics
Cerevel Therapeutics (www.cerevel.com) is dedicated to unraveling the mysteries of the brain to treat neuroscience diseases. The company is unlocking new treatment opportunities by understanding the neurocircuitry of the symptoms that characterize these important, but difficult to treat neurological diseases. Cerevel Therapeutics has a diversified pipeline comprising four clinical-stage investigational therapies and several pre-clinical compounds with the potential to treat a range of neuroscience diseases, including Parkinson’s, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, schizophrenia and addiction. Headquartered in the Greater Boston area, Cerevel Therapeutics is fueled to advance its current research and development programs while exploring new modalities through internal research efforts, external collaborations, or acquisitions.
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