NEW YORK--Synergy Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTC BB:SGYP.OB SGYP News) is pleased to congratulate Melvin K. Spigelman, M.D., a director of Synergy Pharmaceuticals, on his recent appointment as President and CEO of the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance), a not-for-profit product development partnership seeking to develop new drugs to treat tuberculosis.
Dr. Spigelman has been a director of Synergy Pharmaceuticals since August, 2008. Dr. Spigelman previously served as Director of Research and Development for the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development. Before joining the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development, Dr. Spigelman was President of Hudson-Douglas Ltd, a consulting company, from June 2001 to June 2003. From 2000 to 2001, Dr. Spigelman served as a Vice President, Global Clinical Centers at Knoll Pharmaceuticals, a pharmaceutical unit of BASF Pharma. He received a B.A. in engineering from Brown University and an M.D. from The Mount Sinai School of Medicine; and is board certified in internal medicine, medical oncology and preventive medicine.
“Dr. Mel Spigelman’s appointment as President and CEO of the TB Alliance further testifies to his unique mix of pharmaceutical and management expertise, combining broad experience in research and development, commercialization, academic oversight and global public health,” said Gary S. Jacob, President and Acting CEO of Synergy. “Mel’s association with Synergy has only been for a few months, yet he has already made a considerable impact on the clinical development of our drug SP-304 to treat chronic constipation and IBS-C.”
About Synergy Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Synergy is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of new drugs to treat gastrointestinal disorders and diseases, and is a subsidiary of Callisto Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTC BB: CLSP). Synergy's proprietary drug SP-304 began clinical development in June 2008 for gastro-intestinal disorders. SP-304 is currently finishing a Phase I clinical trial in volunteers to treat chronic constipation and IBS-C. SP-304 is a synthetic analog of the human gastrointestinal hormone uroguanylin, and acts by activating the guanylate cyclase C (GC-C) receptor on epithelial cells of the colon. More information is available at http://www.synergybio.net.