MorphoSys Further Strengthens its Proprietary Development Team
MorphoSys AG (FSE: MOR; Prime Standard Segment, TecDAX) announced today the appointment of a new Head of Pre-clinical Development & Project Management. Dr. Ulrich Moebius joins MorphoSys from Medigene AG, a TecDAX listed German biopharmaceutical company. For the last nine years, he held the position of Head of Pre-clinical Development, where he was responsible for the company's preclinical activities in a range of development projects predominantly in cancer and contributed to the market approval of two medical therapies. Prior to his tenure at Medigene, he spent five years with the Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum DKFZ, Heidelberg, the leading German biomedical research institute dedicated to cancer research and two years at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute located in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Dr. Moebius has a PhD in immunology from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and qualified as a professor in Immunology at the University of Heidelberg.
'I am delighted to welcome Ulrich Moebius to the growing development team of MorphoSys. He combines broad academic research experience in multiple disciplines and indications with an extensive drug development expertise in a biopharmaceutical company, which will support us in our plans to expand our proprietary drug pipeline,' commented Dr. Arndt Schottelius, Chief Development Officer of MorphoSys AG.'
MorphoSys's expanding proprietary product development activities are funded by cash-flows from its partnered discovery business, particularly the wide-ranging strategic alliance entered into with Novartis in December 2007. MorphoSys recently announced plans to significantly broaden its proprietary therapeutic antibody pipeline in 2009 and the years ahead. At the end of 2009, the company expects a total of up to eight proprietary antibody programs ongoing, with its lead development program MOR103 in a phase 2 clinical trial and seven programs in preclinical development and discovery stage. As Head of Preclinical Development & Project Management Dr. Moebius will contribute to the entire development process of MorphoSys's proprietary antibody programs.
'I'm looking forward to working with the entire R&D team of MorphoSys to expand the Company's proprietary pipeline and move new programs from research and discovery stage through pre-clinical development and into clinical trials quickly and efficiently,' commented Dr. Moebius.