Senior pharmaceutical industry veteran Dr. Mike Gresser has joined the MRF as Chief Scientific Officer. Dr. Gresser’s background in academic and industry research and development make him ideally suited to guide the MRF through the commercial development of its myelin repair discoveries.
“The traditional gap between university-based science and commercial drug development has often meant that too much good science has not advanced toward potential patient treatments,” says Dr. Gresser. “For a non-profit organization like the MRF to make this connection between academic scientists and pharma executives at this early stage of drug development is exceptional. I am impressed with the quality and therapeutic relevance of the intellectual property the MRF has accumulated in such a short time,” continues Dr. Gresser, “and I am eager to be part of their solution for a new MS therapy.”
Dr. Gresser holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Brandeis University. His career includes eight years on the faculty at Simon Fraser University in Burnby, British Columbia and 12 years in senior staff positions at the Merck Frost Center for Therapeutic Research.
In 2000, Dr. Gresser joined Amgen Inc. in Thousand Oaks, California, as Vice President Research for Inflammation, where he remained until April, 2006. For two years Dr. Gresser served as Head of Neuroscience Research as well as Inflammation Research. His team at Amgen worked on many molecular targets, introducing numerous small molecules, human antibodies, and other proteins into development. The work of Dr. Gresser and his team has led to three drugs coming to market.The work of Dr. Gresser and his team has led to three drugs coming to market. Dr. Gresser has been a member of the MRF’s Drug Discovery Advisory Board (DDAG) since January 2008. The DDAG was formed in January 2008 to assist MRF management and Principal Investigators in prioritizing MRF’s drug targets and developing industry-standard data packages for presentation to commercial partners for further drug development and clinical trials.
With our focus on a patient treatment outcome, it makes sense to have someone with Dr. Gresser’s outstanding credentials as a “drug maker” leading our scientific effort at this time. I am delighted that our work has developed to the point where we could attract someone with Dr. Gresser’s stature to join our team.
See the Press Release.
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