Atea Pharmaceuticals Appoints Nancy Gail Berry Agrawal, Ph.D., as Executive Vice President of Preclinical Development

Rhea-AI Summary

Atea Pharmaceuticals has appointed Nancy Gail Berry Agrawal, Ph.D., as Executive Vice President of Preclinical Development, enhancing its expertise in drug discovery and development. Dr. Agrawal, with over 25 years of experience at Merck, replaces Steven Good, who will retire this year. Her extensive background in developing antivirals aligns with Atea's mission to create oral therapies for severe viral diseases. The company is focused on expanding its pipeline, including treatments for COVID-19, hepatitis C, dengue, and RSV.

Positive

• Appointment of Nancy Gail Berry Agrawal, Ph.D., as Executive Vice President of Preclinical Development, expected to enhance drug development expertise.
• Dr. Agrawal's extensive experience in antiviral drug development may accelerate Atea's pipeline expansion.
• Atea is focusing on innovative oral therapies for severe viral diseases, including high-impact targets like SARS-CoV-2.

Negative

• None.

Pharmaceutical Research Leader Brings More Than 25 Years of Drug Discovery and Development Experience from Merck

BOSTON, Feb. 10, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Atea Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of oral direct acting therapeutics for severe viral diseases, today announced the appointment of Nancy Gail Berry Agrawal, Ph.D., as Executive Vice President of Preclinical Development. Dr. Agrawal previously served as Vice President of Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics, and Drug Metabolism at Merck & Co., Inc.

“We are delighted to welcome Nancy to the Atea team. Her broad scientific and managerial experience in both drug discovery and drug development spanning across multiple therapeutic areas at Merck, will enrich our scientific and clinical endeavors,” said Jean-Pierre Sommadossi, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Atea Pharmaceuticals. “Nancy’s multifaceted and deep experience developing antivirals and other therapeutics will contribute to and inform the growth, expansion and acceleration of our development pipeline.”

Dr. Agrawal succeeds Steven Good, Executive Vice President of Preclinical Sciences as Mr. Good transitions this year from his role at Atea to retirement. Mr. Good has served as Atea’s Executive Vice President of Preclinical Science since Atea’s inception and greatly contributed to the advancement of the Company’s pipeline.

“This is an exciting time to join Atea as it is broadening its pipeline and developing innovative new drug candidates that are designed to transform global treatment paradigm for patients suffering from a variety of severe viral diseases for which there are limited or no pharmaceutical treatment options,” said Dr. Agrawal. “I am looking forward to becoming a part of the Atea team and to participating in the realization of Atea’s vision of becoming a global leader in the discovery and development of oral direct-acting antivirals.”

Dr. Agrawal joins Atea after having spent more than 25 years in roles of increasing responsibility at Merck & Co., Inc., most recently as Vice President of Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics, and Drug Metabolism. Prior roles at Merck & Co. included Associate Vice President of Formulation Sciences, Associate Vice President of Biopharmaceutics and Specialty Dosage Forms and Associate Vice President of Preclinical Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, and Excretion.

Dr. Agrawal holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Kansas State University and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan. Dr. Agrawal has authored more than three dozen peer-reviewed publications.

About Atea Pharmaceuticals

Atea Pharmaceuticals is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing oral therapies to address the unmet medical needs of patients with life-threatening viral diseases. Leveraging the Company’s deep understanding of antiviral drug development, nucleos(t)ide chemistry, biology, biochemistry and virology, Atea has built a proprietary nucleotide prodrug platform to develop novel product candidates to treat single stranded ribonucleic acid, or ssRNA, viruses, which are a prevalent cause of severe viral diseases. Currently, Atea is focused on the development of orally-available, potent, and selective nucleotide prodrugs for difficult-to-treat, life-threatening viral infections, including severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes COVID-19, hepatitis C virus (HCV), dengue virus and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). For more information, please visit www.ateapharma.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including without limitation statements regarding our expectations surrounding the potential of our product candidates and expectations regarding our pipeline. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These and other important factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in our most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and our other filings with the SEC could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any such forward-looking statements represent management’s estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change.

Contacts

Jonae Barnes
SVP, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
617-818-2985
Barnes.jonae@ateapharma.com

Will O’Connor
Stern Investor Relations
212-362-1200
will.oconnor@sternir.com

FAQ

Who is Nancy Gail Berry Agrawal and what is her role at Atea Pharmaceuticals?

Nancy Gail Berry Agrawal is the newly appointed Executive Vice President of Preclinical Development at Atea Pharmaceuticals, bringing over 25 years of experience from Merck.

What is Atea Pharmaceuticals focused on?

Atea Pharmaceuticals focuses on discovering and developing oral therapies for severe viral diseases, particularly targeting RNA viruses.

What diseases is Atea Pharmaceuticals developing treatments for?

Atea is developing treatments for COVID-19, hepatitis C, dengue virus, and respiratory syncytial virus.

What does the appointment of Dr. Agrawal mean for Atea's development pipeline?

Dr. Agrawal's appointment is expected to enhance Atea's drug development efforts and support the expansion of its treatment pipeline.