Biotechnology company Beckley Psytech has welcomed neuroscience expert Dr Frank Wiegand to its team as Chief Medical Officer.
Dr Wiegand is a trained neurologist and neuroscientist, and has spent more than 20 years with Janssen, a Johnson & Johnson company, where he most recently held the position of Vice President, Global Medical Affairs in neuroscience.
During his two decades at J&J, Wiegand has held positions in marketing and sales, global strategic marketing, medical affairs, and market access, and has extensive research and development experience across the organisation.
Wiegand commented: “I am truly excited to be joining the leadership team at Beckley Psytech as we usher in a new age in the research, development and delivery of psychedelic medicines.
“Bringing novel and more effective patient-centered solutions to devastating neuropsychiatric diseases has been the focus of my entire career. I am thrilled to be joining the inventive and passionate team at Beckley Psytech, where we will work relentlessly to make this dream a reality.”
During his time at J&J, Wiegand worked on more than 30 different new molecular entities across multiple neurological and psychiatric conditions, most recently contributing to the development and subsequent approval of esketamine, which was approved for the treatment of treatment resistant depression and suicidality.
Beckley Psytech says Wiegand’s broad experience leading multiple functions across the continuum of pharmaceutical research, development and commercialisation brings extensive knowledge and knowhow to its xecutive team, where he will be responsible for all aspects of the clinical development of the company’s assets.
Cosmo Feilding Mellen, CEO of Beckley Psytech, said: “Following our highly successful series B fundraise and as our lead psychedelic compounds begin to enter the clinic, we are thrilled to be welcoming Dr Wiegand as our Chief Medical Officer.
“Frank brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise alongside extensive leadership experience to Beckley Psytech and his involvement and experience in developing and commercialising esketamine for treatment resistant depression will be invaluable as we progress through our clinical trials and continue our rapid growth as a leader in psychedelic medicine.”
Wiegand received his M.D. and PhD. from the Heinrich Heine University of Düsseldorf, Germany and completed his fellowship training as a neurologist at the University of Essen, Germany. Additionally, he completed his post-doctoral fellowship in neuropharmacology, specifically cerebral ischemia, at the Humboldt University Berlin, Germany with funding from the German Stroke Research Foundation.
In 2002 he received a Postgraduate Certificate in Business Administration from the Herriot Watt University, Scotland.
Wiegand joins Beckley Psytech at an exciting time as the lead psychedelic compounds, low-dose psilocybin and 5-MeO-DMT, are entering phase 1 clinical trials.
