Pathalys Pharma Appoints Leadership Team, Led by Veteran CEO Neal Fowler
Pathalys Pharma, a newly formed biopharmaceutical company developing therapies for chronic kidney disease, has announced its executive leadership team, led by Neal Fowler, a veteran entrepreneur in North Carolina’s life sciences community.
Pathalys, based in Research Triangle Park, appointed the following executives:
- Ashwin Ram, M.D., co-founder and senior vice president of operations
- Patrick Treanor, M.B.A., chief operating officer
- David Banks, M.B.A., senior vice president, technical operations
- Dr. Theodore Danoff, M.D., Ph.D., chief medical officer and senior vice president of clinical development
- Greg Klatt, CPA, vice president of finance
“This robust and highly capable team of leaders has extensive experience in building companies and a demonstrated track record of delivering results in their respective areas," Fowler said in a news release. "I am confident that this group of accomplished leaders, along with our distinguished board, can deliver on our mission to successfully advance upacicalcet and other enhanced therapeutics with the expressed goal of transforming the lives of CKD (chronic kidney disease) patients."
The five executives will report to Fowler, who also serves on the company’s board of directors.
Late-stage clinical trials planned
Pathalys launched on March 1 with seed financing from DaVita Venture Group and Catalys Pacific.
Its lead drug candidate, upacicalcet, was acquired through a license granted by EA Pharma for exclusive rights to the development and commercialization of the product, worldwide outside of Japan and Asia.
Upacicalcet is an intravenously administered calcimimetic, a small molecule that mimics the action of calcium on tissues through the activation of the calcium-sensing receptor that is expressed in various human organ tissues. Upacicalcet has been shown to reduce levels of intact parathyroid hormone and may have a better tolerability profile for patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism receiving hemodialysis, according to Pathalys.
Upacicalcet was granted Marketing Authorization in Japan in 2021, under the brand name UPASITA.
In anticipation of a submission to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration seeking approval of the drug, Pathalys said it would conduct two identical Phase 3 clinical trials in patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism due to end-stage kidney disease on maintenance hemodialysis.
Beyond upacicalcet, Pathalys is identifying other high-priority needs and potential solutions for patients with end-stage kidney disease.
Fowler a seasoned CEO
Fowler was most recently the chief executive officer at Morrisville-based Liquidia Corp., a publicly held biopharmaceutical company focused on treatments for pulmonary arterial hypertension. While at Liquidia, he also was co-founder and CEO of Envisia Therapeutics, an ophthalmology therapeutics company.
Prior to his 13 years at Liquidia, Fowler worked for seven years with Johnson & Johnson, serving as president of Centocor, a global multi-billion-dollar subsidiary focused on biomedicines, and president of Ortho-McNeil Neurologics, a company focused on neurological disorders.
Fowler started his career with Eli Lilly and Company, working for 13 years in a variety of sales, marketing, and business development roles in both the pharmaceutical and medical device divisions.
He is the current chair of both NCBIO, the trade organization for North Carolina’s life sciences sector, and the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy Foundation. He also served on the North Carolina Biotechnology Center board of directors from 2017 to 2020.
Fowler is a native of Raleigh and earned a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy and an M.B.A., both from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.