PARIS, March 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Novexel, a speciality pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of novel antibiotics designed to overcome the significant global problem of microbial resistance, announces today the appointment of Dr. Karen Bush to the Company's Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). Novexel's SAB is chaired by Dr. David Shlaes who sits on the Company's board. Dr. Bush, who is currently Adjunct Professor at the Department of Biology at Indiana University, brings extensive experience and knowledge of the anti-infectives field to Novexel's SAB.

Dr. Bush's distinguished scientific career in anti-infective research and development spans over three decades and she is a recognised authority in the study of resistance mediated by beta-lactamases. During her career, Dr. Bush has held the position of Distinguished Research Fellow at Johnson Johnson, Director of Microbial Biochemistry at the Astra Research Center, Boston, MA; Senior Research Fellow, Infectious Disease at Wyeth and Principal Investigator at the Department of Microbiology at Bristol Myers Squibb. Over this period, Dr. Bush was a member of the scientific teams that developed a portfolio of leading hospital antibiotics including levofloxacin (Levaquin), doripenem (Doribax). aztreonam (Azactam) and piperacillin-tazobactam (Zozyn).

Dr. Bush received her Ph.D. from the Indiana University Chemistry Department in 1970 and has since authored over 160 peer-reviewed publications and 17 book chapters. Dr. Bush has also served on the Editorial Boards of several internationally renowned journals including Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy and the European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. Dr. Bush is a member of the Program Committee for one of the anti-infectives industry's most important conferences, the Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, ICAAC. Moreover, Dr. Bush was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology in 2000, in recognition of her record of scientific achievement and original contributions to microbiology

About Novexel

Novexel is a speciality pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of novel antibiotics designed to overcome the significant global problem of microbial resistance. The ever increasing resistance to marketed antibiotics has led to a clear need for novel drugs that are active against multi-drug resistant bacteria. Novexel's products are targeting the global hospital antibiotic market, which was worth an estimated $17bn in 2008.[1]

Novexel currently has two novel antibacterials in Phase II clinical development. These are the injectable beta-lactamase inhibitor, NXL104, which is being developed in combination with the cephalosporin antibiotic ceftazidime for serious Gram negative infections, and the oral streptogramin antibiotic, NXL103, for the treatment of Gram positive infections, with a focus on treatment in the hospital setting and intravenous (IV) to oral switch. Novexel has three further programmes in preclinical development, NXL105, a novel anti-Pseudomonal antibiotic, NXL201, a novel echinocandin antifungal agent, and NXL104 in combination with ceftaroline. This latter product is being developed by our partner, Forest Laboratories, solely for North American markets.

Novexel was created in December 2004 as an independent spin-out of the sanofi-aventis (Euronext Paris: SAN, NYSE: SNY) anti-infectives unit. Novexel has a team of 50 employees with significant experience in anti-infective research and development, who are located in Paris, France and Philadelphia, USA.

[1] Source: IMS Health, MIDAS, 2006-2008

For further information please contact: Novexel Gordon Waldron, CFO gordon.waldron@novexel.com Citigate Dewe Rogerson Amber Bielecka/David Dible/Nina Enegren Tel.: +44-(0)207-638-95-71 amber.bielecka@citigatedr.co.uk

For further information please contact: Novexel, Gordon Waldron, CFO, gordon.waldron@novexel.com. Citigate Dewe Rogerson, Amber Bielecka/David Dible/Nina Enegren, Tel.: +44-(0)207-638-95-71, amber.bielecka@citigatedr.co.uk