Neurogesx loses financial expert from its audit committee
Bruce Peacock resigned today from the board of directors after serving less than two years there, where he also chaired its audit committee and was deemed its “financial expert” as defined by SEC rules. The resignation would leave the company with only two directors serving on its audit committee, a technical violation of a Nasdaq requirement that it be staffed by at least three independent directors.
Peacock, a venture partner at SV Life Sciences Advisers since 2006, joined the board at Neurogesx in August 2007. Since then he was named chief executive at Alba Therapeutics, a Baltimore-based pharmaceutical company developing products to treat autoimmune and inflammatory diseases.
In other news, Neurogesx, which is developing treatments for pain, today became an official component of the Russell 3000 index, one of the broadest measures of stock performance.
Neurogesx shares, which have risen more than 400 percent so far this year, fell today 8 cents, or 1.3 percent, to $5.92.
We previously noted in March about the approval Neurogesx received by the European Medicines Agency’s committee for medicinal products for human use of Qutenza, its treatment of peripheral neuropathic pain in non-diabetic adults.
Last week the company entered an exclusive distribution deal with the European subsidiary of Astellas Pharma, including marketing an licensing for the commercialization of Qutenza in the 27 countries of the European Union, Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein as well as Switzerland, certain countries in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
