France, Lille - 5^th April 2022 - Alzprotect, a French biopharmaceutical company specialised in the development of new therapeutic solutions for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, in particular Alzheimer's disease, appoints Dr Susanna Del Signore as Chief Medical Officer (CMO).

Dr Susanna Del Signore has over 20 years of experience in research and development (R&D) in the pharmaceutical industry, particularly in the field of neurology. She has been a project leader, attaining the position of Chief Medical Officer (CMO), for the development of drugs across phases I to III. She has held increasing responsibility in large pharmaceutical (Servier and then Sanofi, between 1993 and 2015) and biotechnology companies (Biophytis between 2016 and 2018). From 2005 to 2009 she worked at the European Medicines Agency (EMA), in the evaluation of new pharmacological treatments for neurodegenerative diseases,  liaising  with European national agencies, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and clinical experts. Susanna Del Signore founded BLUECOMPANION in 2015, a start-up focused on the design and implementation of e-health projects for public-private partnerships and on innovative methodologies for the generation of regulatory quality clinical data. She has built meaningful expertise in the design and conduct of first-in-man and phase 2 clinical trials, clinical development planning, and regulatory strategy, both in France and internationally (Europe, USA, Japan). For instance, she contributed to a global regulatory policy project within the MIT-led think tank on adaptive licensing. In 2013, she coordinated on behalf of Sanofi and in collaboration with Eli Lilly, Novartis and GSK, an IMI (Innovative Medicines Initiatives) call for projects in geriatrics, targeting age-related sarcopenia as a new indication.

Dr Philippe Verwaerde, founder and CEO of Alzprotect, says: "I am delighted to welcome Susanna to our team; she has significant experience as a Chief Medical Officer and has a solid understanding not only of the issues related to the development of new generation therapies, but also of protocols and clinical trials as they evolve, arbitration, and reallocation of resources based on results and strategy. She has mastered, in all its ethical nuances, the imponderable need to discuss with the wider scientific community, KOLs, and patient associations according to the prerogatives set out by the regulatory authorities. We are confident that her experience combined with her managerial skills will be of great value to Alzprotect as we prepare to further develop AZP2006 in Phase 2/3 clinical trials for the treatment of progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP). Dr. Susanna Del Signore is a great asset to complement our team and and we are honored to have her support in the implementation of our clinical plan.”

"I am particularly proud be joining Alzprotect, a persevering French biotech company that is wholeheartedly and relentlessly dedicated to the development of ground-breaking therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, with products based on a novel and promising mechanism of action. I am thrilled to have been offered the opportunity to work on Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, an orphan neurodegenerative disease that primarily affects older persons, usually after the age of seventy . Such a disease should  be diagnosed as early as possible and treated with a view to slowing motor and cognitive decline. I will be listening to and working with patients, their families, and the medical community to implement in our planned clinical trials the best methodologies," commented Dr Susanna Del Signore.

Olivier Ossipoff, Chairman of Xerys Invest, added: "We are very pleased to see Dr Susanna Del Signore appointed as Chief Medical Officer and join the Alzprotect team. Her arrival marks an important step in the evolution of this exceptional biotech company that we have been supporting since 2017 and underlines its desire to accelerate the implementation of its clinical development plan."

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