News

Posted On: 09/22/2006

Amedio Takes Manufacturing & Process Development Post at Ziopharm

PharmaManufacturing.com

Ziopharm Oncology, Inc. on Sept. 22 announced the appointment of John Amedio, Ph.D., as Vice President, Manufacturing & Process Development. Amedio joins Ziopharm with over 17 years of drug development experience in both major pharmaceutical and early stage biotechnology companies. He has a Ph.D. in organic chemistry and he is an adjunct professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Boston, where he teaches Good Manufacturing Practices Compliance.

Amedio's extensive experience in chemistry, manufacturing and control (CMC), analytical and process development, and formulation development will be critical for Ziopharm as the Company moves toward manufacturing scale-up in anticipation of late stage clinical trials for its lead programs, ZIO-101 and ZIO-201. Prior to joining Ziopharm, Amedio spent 10 years at EPIX Pharmaceuticals where he was most recently Executive Director, Chemical and Analytical Research & Development. He was with Sandoz Pharmaceuticals (now part of Novartis) prior to joining EPIX.

"Dr. Amedio joins Ziopharm at a critical juncture in the Company's evolution as we move from small scale production of material for early clinical trials to the large batches required for pivotal studies," said Jon Lewis, CEO. "John's experience and leadership will be key for us as we ramp up production of our lead drugs, ZIO-101 and ZIO-201 and as we acquire additional programs."

About Ziopharm Oncology, Inc.

Ziopharm Oncology, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development and commercialization of a diverse, risk-sensitive portfolio of in-licensed cancer drugs to address unmet medical needs. The Company applies new insights from molecular and cancer biology to understand the efficacy and safety limitations of approved and developmental cancer therapies and identifies proprietary and related molecules for better patient treatment. For more information, visit www.ziopharm.com.