Ex-Retrophin CEO launches new drug company
A new company, Turing Pharmaceuticals, launched this week, along with news of three acquisitions for its commercial operations and development pipeline. The company also introduced its senior management team.
New York-based Turing will focus on developing and commercialising treatments for serious diseases and conditions across a broad range of therapeutic areas, for which there are currently limited or no treatment options.
Turing’s Founder and Executive Chairman is Martin Shkreli, who is the founder and former CEO of Retrophin. At Retrophin, Mr. Shkreli led the acquisition of three key products in the six months following the company’s IPO in 2014.
In addition to Mr. Shkreli, Turing has assembled a management team comprised of senior executives with extensive experience in the drug industry, including:
Howard Dorfman – SVP, General Counsel; Mr. Dorfman formerly worked at Ferring Pharmaceuticals and Bayer Pharmaceuticals (US) as well as at law firm Ropes & Gray
Hass Patel, Ph.D. –VP for Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls; Dr. Patel was previously with Pharmasset, Reliant Pharmaceuticals and GlaxoSmithKline
Nicholas Pelliccione, Ph.D. – VP, Regulatory affairs; Dr. Pelliccione was formerly with Schering-Plough, Regado Biosciences, Aeterna Zenaris and Chugai Pharma USA
Michael Harrison – Chief Financial Officer; Mr. Harrison was formerly with Retrophin
Nancy Retzlaff – Chief Commercial Officer; Ms. Retzlaff joins in early March from Mesoblast Ltd.; she was previously with Pfizer, Schering-Plough and Bayer
Megan Roberts, Ph.D. – VP and Product Leader for Vecamyl; Dr. Roberts previously worked at Genentech and BioMarin
“Our success in bringing to market a line of new therapeutic products very much depends on the caliber of our people,” Mr. Shkreli said. “We’re thrilled to have assembled such a strong bench of senior talent for our launch and look forward to announcing additional key positions in due course.”
Simultaneous to its launch, Turing announced the acquisition of three major assets from Retrophin: an intranasal formulation of ketamine, Syntocinon (oxytocin nasal solution) and Vecamyl (mecamylamine HCl tablets).
Turing is developing its new intranasal formulation of ketamine for a variety of psychiatric indications. The company is working on a delivery mechanism to develop ketamine for the treatment of several serious psychiatric conditions for patients who currently have limited treatment options, and expects to commence clinical trials in the coming year.
Turing’s plans further include a development program for Syntocinon in addressing multiple indications across several therapeutic areas.
The acquisition of Vecamyl provides Turing with its first FDA-approved product and revenue stream, which it says it plans to grow through a robust clinical development and education program.
“Our goal is to build a diverse portfolio and pipeline of therapies that can make a significant difference to patients,” Mr. Shkreli said. “We are creating a strong, experienced team at Turing with a solid track record of success to execute on our objectives.”