NEW YORK and MELBOURNE, Australia, March 5, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Regenerative medicine company Mesoblast Limited (ASX:MSB; USOTC:MBLTY) today announced that William M. Burns, former Chief Executive Officer of Roche Pharmaceuticals, has been appointed a non-executive Director of the Mesoblast Board, effective immediately.
Mr Burns was the CEO of the pharmaceutical division of Swiss global healthcare company F.Hoffman La Roche (Roche) from 2005-2009, and a non-executive member of the Roche Board of Directors from 2010-2014. Mr Burns has also served on the Board of Directors of Genentech since 2002, and is a Director of Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. and Shire plc. Additional roles have included as Chairman of biologic companies Okairos, acquired in 2013 by GlaxoSmithKline; and Crucell, acquired in 2011 by Johnson & Johnson; Chairman of the Wellcome Trust's HICF Funding Committee, and Representative of the European Medical Companies on the British Government's Ministry Industry Steering Group.
Mr Burns said: "Regenerative medicine has the potential to make a major impact on the way serious medical diseases are treated. Mesoblast is the global leader in the development of adult stem cell therapies and I am delighted to join this exciting company."
Mesoblast Chairman Brian Jamieson said: "Bill Burns brings to Mesoblast significant strategic thinking, high-level leadership experience and broad operational knowledge in the pharmaceutical sector. We are very pleased that such a high caliber executive has accepted this Board appointment which we regard as additional validation of the potential of our stem cell-based technologies."
About Mesoblast
Mesoblast Limited (ASX:MSB; USOTC:MBLTY) is a world leader in the development of biologic products for the broad field of regenerative medicine. The Company's proprietary technologies include its highly purified, immunoselected Stro-1/Stro-3 positive Mesenchymal Precursor Cells (MPCs), culture-expanded Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs), Dental Pulp Stem Cells (DPSCs), and expanded Hematopoietic Stem Cells (HSCs). Mesoblast's protein technologies are based on factors derived from its proprietary cellular platforms, including Stromal Derived Factor-1 (SDF-1). Mesoblast's allogeneic or 'off-the-shelf' regenerative medicine products are being developed for the treatment of conditions with significant unmet medical needs. Product development focus is in four major and distinct areas - systemic diseases with an underlying inflammatory and immunologic etiology; cardiac and vascular diseases; orthopedic diseases of the spine; and improving outcomes of bone marrow transplantation associated with oncology or genetic conditions. www.mesoblast.com