Allergen Expands Management

Mary Rozenman, Ph.D., has been appointed senior vice president, corporate and commercial development at Allergen Research Corp. (ARC), and Mike Holfinger, Ph.D., was named vice president, manufacturing.
 
Dr. Rozenman and Dr. Holfinger will fill key functions as ARC prepares for its upcoming Phase III trial of its lead product, AR 101, a peanut protein formulation for treating peanut allergy via characterized oral desensitization immunotherapy (CODIT). The company also plans to initiate clinical trials for treatment of egg and milk allergies.
 
Dr. Rozenman joins the company from Longitude Capital, where she was a vice president focused on biotechnology investments. Previously she was an associate principal in the Healthcare and Corporate Finance practices at McKinsey & Co., where she advised senior management of leading pharmaceutical companies on a range of strategic and operational issues, and led the firm’s global Biosimilars practice.
 
Dr. Holfinger joins the company from Alexza Pharmaceuticals, where he was vice president, manufacturing and global supply chain management. He has more than twenty years of experience in process development and global manufacturing of commercial products, including seven years with Affymax, where he most recently served as vice president, manufacturing and CMC Development, and 14 years with Pfizer, Pharmacia and Upjohn.
 
“We are delighted that Mary and Mike have joined us to advance ARC’s mission of improving the lives of people with food allergies,” said ARC chief executive officer Stephen Dilly, MBBS, Ph.D. “The expansion of our management team, the announcement of our Series B financing and, most importantly, the recent successful completion of Phase 2 for our lead product underscore the progress ARC has made in developing products to treat food allergies. We welcome Mary and Mike to the ARC leadership team.”