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CRANBURY, NJ, February 19, 2009 –
VaxInnate
Corporation
today
announced
that
David
J.
Williams,
retired
chairman
and
chief
executive
officer
(CEO)
of
sanofi
pasteur,
the
world’s
largest
vaccine
business,
has
joined
the
company’s
Board
of
Directors.
An internationally known business leader, Williams is recognized as an
architect
of
sanofi
pasteur’s
transformation
from
a
niche
vaccine
business
to
today’s
global
leader
in
vaccine
development,
production
and
sales.
Sanofi
pasteur
is
the
vaccines
division
of
sanofi-aventis
Group,
one
of
the
world’s
largest
pharmaceutical
companies.
Under
Williams’
leadership,
more
than
one
billion
doses
of
sanofi
pasteur’s
lifesaving
vaccines
were
administered
annually
to
500
million
people
around
the
world,
representing
more
than
25%
of
the
world’s
vaccine
market.
In
addition
to
his
responsibilities
at
sanofi,
Williams
served
on
the
supervisory
board
of
Sanofi
Pasteur
MSD,
a
50-50
joint
venture
with
Merck
&
Co.,
Inc.
that
markets
and
distributes
vaccines
in
Europe.
“Throughout his distinguished career, Dave Williams has consistently
demonstrated
his
commitment
to
vaccines
and
their
unquestionable
value
in
preventing
disease,”
said
Alan
Shaw,
PhD,
VaxInnate
CEO
and
Board
member.
“We
are
delighted
to
welcome
Dave
to
our
Board
and
look
forward
to
tapping
his
experience
and
energy
to
help
make
VaxInnate
a
key
player
in
the
vaccine
market.”
Williams’ career with sanofi pasteur began when he joined the division
as a
finance
manager
in
1978,
through
a
series
of
progressively
more
senior
positions,
culminating
in
his
appointment
as
president
and
CEO
in
2002
following
four
years
as
Chief
Operating
Officer
(COO).
He
relinquished
his
role
as
CEO
in
August
2007,
but
continued
to
serve
as
chairman
of
the
sanofi
pasteur
board
until
his
retirement
in
January
2008,
when
he
marked
his
30th
anniversary
of
service.
A native of Scranton, Pennsylvania, Williams received his undergraduate
degree
in
accounting
from
the
University
of
Scranton,
with
which
he
has
maintained
close
and
affectionate
ties.
He
serves
as a
member
of
the
university’s
board
of
regents
and
is a
past
member
of
the
board
of
trustees.
He
is
also
one
of
the
founding
board
members
of
the
Medical
Education
Development
Consortium,
which
is
creating
the
first
medical
college
in
northeastern
Pennsylvania.
In
addition
to
his
service
to
his
alma
mater,
Williams
sits
on
the
board
of
directors
of
several
biotechnology
companies,
Blue
Cross
of
Northeastern
Pennsylvania,
the
Hospital
Service
Association
of
Northeastern
Pennsylvania,
and
AllOne
Health
Group.
Previously,
Williams
was
a
founding
member
of
the
Partnership
for
Prevention,
a
leading
organization
of
public
and
private
sector
representatives
who
focus
on
preventive
health
care
policies.
He
also
served
as
the
first
liaison
member
of
the
Advisory
Committee
on
Immunization
Practices
(ACIP)
to
the
U.S.
Centers
for
Disease
Control
and
Prevention
(CDC),
which
sets
immunization
policy
in
the
United
States.
He
has
served
on a
number
of
corporate
boards,
as
well
as
the
boards
of
the
International
AIDS
Trust
and
the
Biotechnology
Industry
Organization
(BIO).
He
also
led
the
Vaccine
Policy
Working
Group
of
PhRMA,
the
U.S.
pharmaceutical
industry's
trade
association.
About
VaxInnate
VaxInnate
is a
privately-held
biotechnology
company
in
Cranbury,
NJ
that
is
pioneering
breakthrough
technology
for
use
in
developing
novel
and
proprietary
vaccines.
VaxInnate’s
technology
has
the
potential
to
dramatically
improve
the
potency,
manufacturing
capacity
and
cost-effectiveness
of
vaccines.
VaxInnate’s
first
vaccines
focus
on
infectious
diseases,
including
seasonal
and
pandemic
flu,
malaria,
dengue
and
respiratory
syncytial
virus.
In
2008,
VaxInnate
generated
positive
Phase
I
clinical
data
for
its
first
two
vaccines;
a
universal
flu
vaccine
and
a
seasonal
flu
vaccine.
VaxInnate’s
technology
platform
is
also
being
investigated
for
development
of
vaccines
for
other
diseases.
For
more
information
about
VaxInnate,
please
visit
http://www.vaxinnate.com.
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