— Cooper, a Finance Veteran, Most Recently Served at WaveTec Vision Systems (Alcon)
— Genead, an Ophthalmologist and Retina Specialist, Brings Proven Record in Ophthalmic Drug Development
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, CA — OCTOBER 21, 2015 — Allegro Ophthalmics, LLC, a biotechnology company focused on the development of therapies to treat vitreoretinal diseases, today announced that Scott Cooper has joined the company as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Vice President of Business Development, and that Mohamed Genead, MD, has been named Executive Medical Director.
“We are delighted to welcome Scott and Mohamed to Allegro,” says Hampar Karageozian, MSc, MBA, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Allegro Ophthalmics. “Scott’s incredibly successful record at WaveTec and IntraLase demonstrates how exceptionally well-prepared he is to lead Allegro’s finance and business development functions. Mohamed’s exceptional 15 years of clinical research and drug development experience in retina will serve Allegro well as we move our lead investigational drug Luminate® through multiple clinical trials for several vitreoretinal indications. With these two new additions, Allegro is poised for much growth and success.”
A veteran finance executive, Mr. Cooper has spent nearly his entire career, which spans more than 25 years, in financial operations and accounting at numerous medical device and high-tech companies, and has worked for ophthalmic medical device companies for the last 11 years. Most recently, Mr. Cooper served as the CFO of WaveTec Vision Systems, Inc., joining the company in 2007. He helped guide the company through the development and commercialization stages of its intraoperative aberrometer (ORA) that ultimately led to the recent sale of WaveTec to Alcon, a division of Novartis. Prior to WaveTec, Mr. Cooper was Corporate Controller at IntraLase Corp., helping to take it from a private company through IPO to the ultimate sale of the company to Advanced Medical Optics.
“This is a very exciting time for Allegro,” says Mr. Cooper. “Should Luminate continue to show the same results in its clinical program as it has in earlier stages, Allegro is uniquely positioned to make a significant contribution to the prevention of vision loss from retinal disease. I am excited to join the Allegro team and look forward to supporting the company’s strategic vision and growth objectives.”
In his role at Allegro, Dr. Genead will work to drive the Luminate platforms into further clinical development as he works closely with the R&D, manufacturing, and product development teams, and will be responsible for running the U.S. and international clinical studies of Luminate in diabetic macular edema (DME) and posterior vitreous detachment. Prior to joining Allegro, Dr. Genead was Global Medical Director of Clinical Development in the Ophthalmology/Retina therapeutics area at Allergan, where he was responsible for such tier-1 projects as DARPins for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and DME, and Brimonidine DDS implants for geographic atrophy. In addition, he served as subject matter and translational medicine expert on retina therapeutics and discovery. Before joining Allergan, Dr. Genead was Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, at the University of Illinois in Chicago. Dr. Genead sits on the board of several organizations and scientific advisory boards, and is the author of more than 40 peer-reviewed papers.
“I’m looking forward to working with the Allegro team to advance Luminate’s clinical program across multiple indications and phases. There is a great need for novel, alternative therapies to treat a host of vitreoretinal diseases,” says Dr. Genead. “Based on the clinical results to date, Luminate has the potential to be a valuable treatment option to millions of people who are at risk of vision loss and blindness.”
About Luminate
Luminate, a first-in-class integrin peptide therapy, treats vitreoretinal diseases by targeting integrin receptors involved in cell signaling and regulation and in the construction of new and aberrant blood vessels. By utilizing two mechanisms of action (vitreolysis and anti-angiogenesis), Luminate has been shown in clinical studies to date to effectively regress and inhibit new blood vessel formation, as well as reduce vascular leakage to maintain and restore vision. Currently in Phase 2 clinical trials for multiple indications, including diabetic macular edema (DME) and non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR), Luminate is an investigational drug not approved by the FDA for commercial sale in the U.S. Allegro maintains commercial rights to Luminate in all territories outside of Japan, Korea and China.
About Allegro Ophthalmics, LLC
With more than 100 years of combined experience in ophthalmic drug discovery, development and manufacturing, Allegro Ophthalmics, LLC, is working to establish integrin peptide therapy as the next-generation pharmaceutical category for the treatment of vitreoretinal diseases. Allegro’s lead investigational drug, Luminate, is currently in Phase 2 studies and has the potential to significantly reduce the current burden of intravitreal injections and to be a viable option for patients with diabetic macular edema, diabetic retinopathy, wet age-related macular degeneration, and vitreomacular traction. By quickly, safely and cost-effectively bringing to market new and improved treatment options for leading causes of blindness, Allegro is committed to offering patients an improved quality of life sustained by self-sufficient, functional vision. For more information, visit stg.allegroeye.com.
Luminate® is a registered trademark of Allegro Ophthalmics, LLC.
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