Kures Therapeutics, Inc, an atai Life Sciences N.V. (Nasdaq: ATAI) company focused on developing treatment options to better manage addictions, depression, and pain, today announced the appointment of Chad E. Beyer, Ph.D., MBA, currently Senior Vice President of Research and Development at Promentis Pharmaceuticals, Inc, as Chief Executive Officer of Kures, effective July 1, 2022.
Dr. Beyer has over 25 years of experience in the discovery, research and translational development of medications that treat the central nervous system and neurological disorders. He has led several preclinical and clinical drug discovery teams and participated in the submission of more than 30 INDs and provided supporting data for the commercialization and life-cycle management of two blockbuster medications. Dr. Beyer has authored more than 70 manuscripts and co-edited the book entitled “Next Generation Antidepressants” and co-founded the journal “Technology Transfer & Entrepreneurship.”
“Dr. Beyer has dedicated his career to advancing CNS treatments – and this dedication exemplifies our mission here at atai,” “I can’t think of a better person to lead the Kures team into the next phase of its journey than Dr. Beyer, and I look forward to seeing what we can achieve together.”
atai Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer and outgoing Kures CEO, Srinivas Rao
Outgoing Kures CEO Dr. Srinivas Rao will continue to support and advise Kures’ programs from his role at atai Life Sciences.
About Kures Therapeutics
Kures is developing KUR-101 for the treatment of OUD. KUR-101 is a deuterated version of mitragynine, the major alkaloid in kratom that is a relatively low-potency mu-opioid receptor, or MOR, agonist. KUR-101 is a semisynthetically produced drug substance designed to improve the safety profile and potential effectiveness of mitragynine. In results from our preclinical studies carried out to date, KUR-101 has shown dose-dependent analgesic effect without inducing significant respiratory depression at therapeutic doses in animal models.
About atai Life Sciences
atai Life Sciences is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company aiming to transform the treatment of mental health disorders. Founded in 2018 as a response to the significant unmet need and lack of innovation in the mental health treatment landscape, atai is dedicated to acquiring, incubating, and efficiently developing innovative therapeutics to treat depression, anxiety, addiction, and other mental health disorders.
atai’s business model combines funding, technology, scientific, and regulatory expertise with a focus on innovative compounds, including psychedelic therapy and other drugs with differentiated safety profiles and therapeutic potential. By pooling resources and best practices, atai aims to responsibly accelerate the development of new medicines across its companies to achieve clinically meaningful and sustained behavioral change in mental health patients.
atai’s vision is to heal mental health disorders so that everyone, everywhere can live a more fulfilled life. For more information, please visit www.atai.life.