AstraZeneca, Cumberland Pharmaceuticals, Pieris, Theraptosis and InteKrin Therapeutics - People on the move

AstraZeneca, Cumberland Pharmaceuticals, Pieris, Theraptosis and InteKrin Therapeutics have all had people on the move in the world of pharmaceutical manufacturing.

As of January 1 next year AstraZeneca will have a new regional supply VP for the Americas, this week naming Kenneth Murtha as the new post holder.

In his expanded role, Murtha will oversee distribution in Latin America, and supply sites in Argentina, Brazil, Puerto Rico and Mexico in addition to his North America responsibilities.

On of three regional supply VPs, Murtha will serve on the company's worldwide operation team to help drive improvements in productivity and optimise the end-to-end supply chain.

Murtha joined AstraZeneca in 1982, holding a number of positions of increasing responsibility in the operations group.

Specialty pharma Cumberland Pharmaceuticals this week announced four senior management promotions, including the promotion of Amy Dix Rock to the position of senior manager of regulatory affairs.

James Herman was also named as senior director of national accounts and corporate compliance, Jean Marstiller was promoted to senior vice president of administrative services and corporate secretary, and J. William Hix is the new vice president of sales and marketing.

German biopharmaceutical Pieris has also made a couple of changes to its management team as it prepares for clinical development of its novel cancer therapy.

The company has named Angelika Stern as its new chief operating officer, bringing with her considerable experience in clinical development of biologic drugs.

Stern previously worked for firms such as Novartis and Roche, and also co-founded Swiss contract research organisation Hesperion.

Pieris also announced the promotion of Andreas Hohlbaum from his former position as director of science and preclinical development to the company's chief technology officer.

Paris-based biotech Theraptosis recently announced the appointment of a new CEO and chairman of the board.

Olivier Chesnoy has been named as the new incumbent, allowing company co-founder Etienne Jacotot to focus on his activities as CSO as the firm edges forward towards clinical development of its first product.

Chesnoy joins Theraptosis from the Fournier pharmaceutical group where he was most recently general manager of Fournier Spain.

InteKrin Therapeutics last week announced that it has appointed a former Amgen clinical development executive to take over as chief medical officer at the firm.

Alex DePaoli will be joining InteKrin's senior management team, taking responsibility for clinical development of the company's pipeline.

DePaoli has over 16 years experience in the diabetes and obesity field, including his time at Amgen in the metabolic disease area.