Groningen, the Netherlands, Sept 17, 2012 / B3C newswire / – Mucosis B.V., the Dutch clinical-stage biotechnology company developing mucosal vaccines, today announced the appointment of Thomas Johnston to the position of Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Mr. Johnston joined Mucosis as Chief Business Officer in May 2011, and succeeds Govert Schouten who is leaving the Company to found an internet start-up.
“Tom has more than 15 years of leadership experience in the biotech and other industries and has been an invaluable member of our executive management team,” said John Lambert, Chairman of the Mucosis Board of Directors. “He has played a lead role in the ongoing rollout of our Mimopath platform licensing initiative and the development of our overall strategies for continued growth. Given Tom’s substantial commercial experience and familiarity with the Company, we are confident he is the right person to lead Mucosis as we execute our strategy and further advance the development and commercialization of the Mimopath platform including our RSV vaccine candidate.” Mr. Lambert continued, “I also would like to thank Govert Schouten for his leadership these past 4 years during which he helped transform Mucosis from a promising start-up into a clinical-stage biotech Company with a strong technology and product pipeline. We wish him the very best in his future endeavors.”
Mr. Johnston said, “I am honored to be given this opportunity to take on the role of CEO of Mucosis during this exciting time in the Company’s history. Over the past year, our team has completed a clinical proof of concept study in human influenza for the Mimopath platform while also advancing our lead vaccine program for the prevention of RSV into pre-clinical studies. These and other recent accomplishments position us very well in the biotech marketplace and I am confident that we will be able to execute on our plan to deliver sustainable results and drive long-term value for our shareholders.”
Mr. Johnston joined Mucosis from Novavax Inc, a Nasdaq-listed clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company. As Vice President of Strategy there, he developed and executed a regional partnership strategy concluding deals in India, Mexico and South Korea. Prior to Novavax, Mr. Johnston served as an executive-level strategic consultant in a number of industries including biotech, and held various senior-level positions with a number of world-class organizations such as Comcast, Microsoft, and Schlumberger. Mr. Johnston holds an M.B.A. from The Wharton Business School and a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from Arcadia University.
