NEW YORK, Aug 15 – In a move signaling Human Genome Sciences’ intentions to expand its business, the company has appointed Ellen Baron to the position of senior vice president, business development.
In her new role, Baron, who was previously senior director of business development at Schering-Plough, will be responsible for licensing products and technologies as well as for carrying out possible mergers and acquisitions.
Baron will report directly to William Haseltine, the Human Genome Sciences’ CEO.
"I believe that Human Genome Sciences is at the forefront of the revolutionary dynamics taking place in the practice of medicine through the use of human genomic information, the establishment of biological knowledge and intellectual property and the commercialization of potential gene-based therapeutic and regenerative medicine products,” Baron said in a statement released Tuesday.
In July, Human Genome Sciences announced that it was entering a new phase of its business, following the expiration of a 1996 agreement that gave members of the human gene therapeutic consortium equal access to HGS’s technology and intellectual property for the development of small molecule and antibody drugs.
After the expiry of the deal, the consortium’s five pharmaceutical members no longer had the right to use Human Genome Sciences' technology for new purposes. As a result, Human Genome Sciences regained exclusive rights to the databases and bioinformatics tools developed through the consortium, allowing the company to pursue new partnerships as well as to expand the business through mergers and acquisitions.