MELBOURNE, Australia,
May 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Global
regenerative medicine company Mesoblast Limited (ASX: MSB) today
announced the appointment of Dr Ben-Zion
Weiner, Special Adviser to the CEO of Teva Pharmaceutical
Industries Ltd, as a non-executive Director of Mesoblast, effective
immediately.
Dr Weiner has been Teva's head of global research and
development for over three decades, most recently as Chief R&D
Officer and a member of the Teva Executive Committee. In this role,
he has directly overseen all pharmaceutical R&D and innovative
branded product pipeline development.
Dr Weiner has been responsible for the development of hundreds
of generic products for the US, EU and other markets. In parallel,
he has been responsible for the development and regulatory approval
of Teva's innovative product portfolio. Dr Weiner has twice been
the recipient of the Rothschild prize for innovation, including for
the commercialization of Copaxone in the treatment of multiple
sclerosis.
Dr Weiner said: "I am happy and proud to be a Board member of
Mesoblast. I trust that stem cell technology is the future of
medicine, and that Mesoblast is at the cutting edge of this
exciting new field.
"I believe that Mesoblast's unique technology and professional
execution capabilities have the potential to deliver multiple
innovative biologic products across a broad range of clinical
indications," added Dr Weiner.
Mesoblast Chairman, Mr Brian
Jamieson, said: "Dr Weiner's extensive pharmaceutical
industry experience and his current role as Special Adviser to the
Teva CEO make him a very valuable and strategic addition to the
Board. We also acknowledge the important contributions and insights
provided by Teva's retiring board representative, Kevin Buchi, and wish him well.
"As Mesoblast expands its clinical product portfolio and
approaches product commercialization, we will continue to broaden
the mix of skills and international expertise of our Directors to
ensure that the Board is in the best position to deliver maximal
shareholder value."
About Mesoblast
Mesoblast Limited (ASX: MSB) is a world leader in commercialising
biologic products for the broad field of regenerative medicine.
Mesoblast has the worldwide exclusive rights for a series of
patents and technologies developed over more than 10 years relating
to the identification, extraction, culture and uses of adult
Mesenchymal Precursor Cells (MPCs). www.mesoblast.com
For further information, please contact:
Julie Meldrum
Corporate Communications
Mesoblast Limited
E: julie.meldrum@mesoblast.com
SOURCE Mesoblast
