SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BlackThorn Therapeutics, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company discovering and developing targeted treatments for neurobehavioral disorders, today announced the appointment of Gregory Vontz to the position of chief executive officer. Mr. Vontz brings more than 30 years of experience in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry to his new role.
“On behalf of the Board and the BlackThorn team, I am pleased to welcome Greg as our new chief executive officer,” said Dr. Corrigan, BlackThorn Chairman of the Board. “His experience as a biotech executive, record of successful drug development and strategic transactions will serve BlackThorn well in advancing the company’s mission to develop new treatments for patients suffering from neurobehavioral disorders.”
“I am excited to join the outstanding team at BlackThorn as it develops a pipeline of targeted treatments that modulate the brain physiology responsible for neurobehaviorial disorders,” said Mr. Vontz. “With the closing of our $54 million Series A funding, we are well positioned to advance our INFORM™ (INtegrated Functional Objective Research Measures) platform which guides the company’s portfolio of first-in-class small molecules and clinical development programs targeting significant neurobehaviorial disorders. I look forward to building the company and working with the team to achieve our goal of becoming the leading neurobehavioral health company.”
Mr. Vontz most recently served as president and chief executive officer of Topica Pharmaceuticals, which was responsible for developing luliconazole for fungal infections of the skin. Prior to Topica, he served as president and chief operating officer of Connetics Corporation, a public specialty pharmaceutical company acquired by Stiefel Pharmaceuticals. Before joining Connetics, Mr. Vontz spent 12 years at Genentech in various senior marketing and product development roles. He started his career in the pharmaceutical industry at Merck, Sharp and Dohme where he worked in sales and sales management. Mr. Vontz has a B.S. in chemistry from the University of Florida and an M.B.A. from the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley.
About BlackThorn Therapeutics, Inc.
BlackThorn Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to transforming the lives of people with neurobehavioral disorders through the discovery and development of novel, targeted treatments. BlackThorn is building a robust pipeline of first- and best-in-class treatments, and is redefining the industry approach to drug discovery and development through its INFORM™ platform, which links brain physiology and its relationship to behavior. With its network of collaborations with leading academic investigators, BlackThorn is developing and deploying a set of technologies that will enable focused, rapid, resource-efficient translational studies for drug development. The company is headquartered in South San Francisco, California. For more information, please visit http://www.blackthornrx.com/.
