Bionovo, Somaxon Pharmaceuticals, Trius Therapeutics, Exelixis, AmerisourceBergen Corporation and Kindred Healthcare - People on the move

Bionovo​ announced the appointment of Dr Rob Frankenberg as vice president of drug manufacturing. He would bring 15 years of chemistry, manufacturing and controls experience to the company, which addresses women's health issues and cancer. Meanwhile, a former vice president of manufacturing for Eli Lilly has been named an independent director of Somaxon Pharmaceuticals​, a speciality pharmaceutical company with interests in the fields of psychiatry and neurology. Michael Eagle was vice president of manufacturing at Eli Lilly between 1994 and 2001 and in his new role replaces Somaxon co-founder Scott Glenn. Mr Eagle serves on many company's boards of directors and has more than 30 years of pharmaceutical industry experience. Somaxon president and chief executive Ken Cohen said: "We are looking forward to calling upon Mike's broad experience in the pharmaceutical industry as we look towards the future of our product candidate Silenor and our company as a whole." ​ Trius Therapeutics​ has also recruited a former drug giant executive. Dr Kenneth Bartizal was formerly Merck & Co's executive director and head of infectious disease research and will now take on the role of chief development officer at Trius. He will assume responsibility for the development of Trius' pipeline of antibacterial drug candidates including the company's lead candidate, TR-701, an antibiotic which is anticipated to begin human clinical trials by the end of this year. "We are extremely pleased to have attracted an executive of Dr Bartizal's calibre to lead our drug development efforts,"​ Trius president and chief executive Dr Jeffrey Stein said. Exelixis​ has announced two new appointments - Dr Arthur DeCillis to position of vice president of clinical research and Anne Champsaur to position of vice president of drug safety. Dr DeCillis joins Exelixis from Novartis, where he was senior and then executive director of Phase II/III Oncology Department. He also held positions of increasing responsibility in oncology global clinical research at Bristol-Myers Squibb. Dr Champsaur joins Exelixis from CV Therapeutics, where she was executive director of drug safety and medical affairs. "Drs DeCillis and Champsaur each have contributed to the development and commercialisation of multiple products that have advanced patient care. We believe their expertise will enhance our ability to bring innovative therapies to market safely and efficiently,"​ Exelixis senior vice president and chief medical officer Gisela Schwab said. AmerisourceBergen Corporation​ and Kindred Healthcare​ announced the appointment of four executives who will serve as officers of the new, independent, publicly traded company, to be called PharMerica Corporation, that will be formed by the proposed combination of their respective institutional pharmacy business, PharMerica Long-Term Care and Kindred Pharmacy Services. Among the positions, Mark McCullough, president of Kindred Pharmacy services, was named chief operating officer.