Chimerix Appoints Randall Lanier, PhD as Chief Science Officer, and Roy W. Ware, PhD, MBA as Chief Manufacturing and Technology Officer

DURHAM, N.C., Jan. 05, 2017 -- Chimerix (NASDAQ:CMRX), a biopharmaceutical company discovering, developing and commercializing medicines that improve outcomes for immunocompromised patients, today announced the appointments of Randall Lanier, PhD, as Chief Science Officer and Roy W. Ware, PhD, MBA, as Chief Manufacturing and Technology Officer. Dr. Lanier will continue to oversee preclinical screening programs, biology and virology. Dr. Ware will oversee manufacturing, clinical trial material sourcing, medicinal and process chemistry, and analytical and pharmaceutical development. Together they will lead the Chimerix Discovery effort.

“Over the course of their tenures at Chimerix, both Drs. Lanier and Ware have made important contributions to our development programs for brincidofovir and pipeline clinical candidates,” said M. Michelle Berrey, MD, MPH, President and CEO. “We will continue to rely on Dr. Lanier’s antiviral expertise and Dr. Ware’s expertise in chemistry and manufacturing as we move towards the successful commercialization of brincidofovir and advance our pipeline research programs.”

During his tenure at Chimerix, Dr. Lanier has led teams that designed successful studies of brincidofovir for smallpox, characterized the resistance/activity profile of brincidofovir for multiple viruses, and explored the potential of the Chimerix chemical library to address unmet medical needs. Recently these efforts led to the identification of a clinical candidate, CMX521, for norovirus, the leading cause of viral gastroenteritis worldwide. Dr. Lanier has nearly 25 years of experience in the discovery and development of antivirals; he has focused much of his career on understanding the activity, mechanism, and resistance profiles of nucleoside analogs used for prevention and treatment of viral disease caused by HIV, CMV, adenovirus and poxviruses. Prior to joining Chimerix in 2007, Dr. Lanier held positions of increasing leadership at Burroughs Wellcome, GlaxoWellcome, and GlaxoSmithKline, where he supervised a clinical virology/immunology laboratory, led teams for drug discovery and licensing opportunity evaluation, served as the clinical virologist on several projects (three approved NDAs), and supported product differentiation and post-marketing activities. Dr. Lanier holds a B.A. in Biology from New College in Sarasota, Florida, and a PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas.

In his previous position as Vice President, Chemistry at Chimerix, Dr. Ware led the chemistry effort for discovery and development programs, including structure/activity evaluation, chemical process development, and manufacturing of CMX521. He also contributed to the patent programs for brincidofovir, securing a patent extension to 2034, and CMX157 (licensed to ContraVir), securing a patent extension to 2033. Prior to joining Chimerix, Dr. Ware held multiple positions in research including as a research scientist at PharmaCore, Inc.; as a consultant to Scynexis, Inc. working in chemical process development and cGMP synthesis; and leading a team of medicinal chemists working on preclinical oncology and malaria programs, as well as contributing to the expansion of patent coverage for the proteome mining technology at Serenex, Inc. Dr. Ware also worked in the area of drug addiction therapy as a postdoctoral researcher at the Research Triangle Institute. Dr. Ware received his B.A. in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, his PhD in Chemistry from Wake Forest University, and his M.B.A. from the Kenan-Flagler Business School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

About Chimerix

Chimerix is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering, developing and commercializing medicines that improve outcomes for immunocompromised patients. Chimerix's proprietary lipid conjugate technology has produced brincidofovir (BCV, CMX001); CMX157, which was licensed to ContraVir Pharmaceuticals; and earlier-stage clinical candidates. Chimerix recently announced a new clinical candidate, CMX521, for the treatment and/or prevention of norovirus. For further information, please visit Chimerix's website, www.chimerix.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, including the possibility that there may not be a viable continued development path for brincidofovir, that FDA and other regulatory authorities may not approve brincidofovir or brincidofovir-based regimens, and that marketing approvals, if granted, may have significant limitations on their use. As a result, brincidofovir may never be successfully commercialized. In addition, Chimerix may be unable to file for regulatory approval for brincidofovir with other regulatory authorities. These risks, uncertainties and other factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Risks are described more fully in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including without limitation the Company’s most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and other documents subsequently filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements contained in this Current Report on Form 8-K speak only as of the date on which they were made. The Company undertakes no obligation to update such statements to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made.

CONTACT:

Investor Relations: 
[email protected]
or
Will O’Connor
Stern Investor Relations
[email protected]
212-362-1200

Media:
Becky Vonsiatsky
W2O Group
[email protected]
413-478-2003