TONIX Pharmaceuticals Elects Ernest Mario, PhD, to its Board of Directors
New York, NY – November 8, 2010 – TONIX Pharmaceuticals, a specialty pharmaceutical company, announced Ernest Mario, Ph.D., has joined the Company’s Board of Directors. Dr. Mario is an experienced corporate director with a distinguished career in global healthcare. Dr. Mario has served as Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive of Glaxo Holdings plc, one of the largest and most successful multinational healthcare companies in the world. Also, Dr. Mario served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ALZA Corporation, a research-based global pharmaceutical company with leading drug delivery technologies.
"We are delighted that Ernest Mario is joining our board of directors," said Seth Lederman, M.D., Chairman and President of TONIX. "His ability to shepherd important pharmaceutical products through the testing and approval process will contribute greatly to our objective to develop high-value prescription medications."
Dr. Mario stated, “I am delighted to work with Dr. Lederman on this project. He and I have known each other for many years and both of us have devoted our careers to discovering and bringing to market innovative products to improve patient health.”
Ernest Mario is Chairman and CEO of Capnia, a private pharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutic products to treat migraine and allergic rhinitis using a proprietary gas delivery system. After working as a drugstore pharmacist and then beginning his pharmaceutical industry career as a researcher, Dr. Mario served in management at a number of drug companies before being named in 1989 Chief Executive of Glaxo, then the second-largest drug company in the world. During Dr. Mario’s tenure, Glaxo brought five major new products to market and saw sales and profits increase by 15% annually. Later Dr. Mario led pioneering drug delivery technology company Alza until selling it to Johnson & Johnson in 2001. He subsequently served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Reliant Pharmaceuticals, where he led the commercialization of Omacor/Lovaza, the first and only prescription omega-3 medication clinically proven to dramatically reduce very high triglycerides.
In addition to his current and past service on a number of corporate boards, Dr. Mario is active in numerous educational and healthcare organizations. He is Chairman of the American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education and is past Chairman of the Duke University Health System. Dr. Mario earned a B.S. in pharmacy at Rutgers and his M.S. and Ph.D. in physical sciences at the University of Rhode Island. He holds honorary doctorates from URI and Rutgers, the latter of which in 2001 renamed its pharmacy school the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy. In 2007 he was awarded the Remington Medal by the American Pharmacists’ Association, pharmacy’s highest honor.
About TONIX Pharmaceuticals
TONIX Pharmaceuticals is developing new treatments for challenging disorders of the central nervous system. The Company’s most advanced program targets fibromyalgia syndrome based on very low dosage cyclobenzaprine, an active pharmaceutical ingredient used in higher doses in approved therapeutics in the U.S. Based on this foundation, the Company is building a deep and diverse pipeline of high-value medications for other syndromes, disorders and diseases, including post-traumatic stress disorder. For more information, please visit www.tonixpharma.com.
Released November 8, 2010