Paratek Mourns Passing of Co-founder Dr. Stuart Levy
BOSTON, Sept. 09, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: PRTK) mourns the loss of Stuart Levy, M.D., who passed way last week. Dr. Levy co-founded the company more than two decades ago along with Dr. Walter Gilbert and was instrumental in the development of Paratek’s lead antibiotic, NUZYRA® and SEYSARA®.
“Stuart was a distinguished physician who was the forefront of antibiotic development and a dedicated champion for the prudent use of antibiotics,” said Evan Loh, M.D., Paratek CEO. “More importantly, he was a dear friend and mentor to so many and his passion lives on in each of us as we work to continue his mission of combating the daily threat of life-threatening infections. We will greatly miss him.”
Dr. Levy discovered the efflux mechanism for drug (tetracycline) resistance and was among the first scientists to document the transfer of resistant bacteria from animals to farm workers. Dr. Levy published more than 250 papers, as well as four edited books and two special journal editions about antibiotic use and resistance. His 1992 book, The Antibiotic Paradox: How Miracle Drugs Are Destroying the Miracle, has been cited widely and translated into four languages.
Dr. Levy graduated magna cum laude from Williams College and received his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He completed his residency at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York and performed postdoctoral research at the National Institutes of Health. He received honorary degrees in biology from Wesleyan University and Des Moines University, and was awarded ASM’s 1995 Hoechst-Roussel Award for esteemed research in antimicrobial chemotherapy, the 2011 Hamao Umezawa Memorial Award by the International Society of Chemotherapy and the 2012 Abbott- ASM Lifetime Achievement Award.
Dr. Levy is survived by his wife, Cecile Pastel Levy, and his three children, Suzanne Levy Friedman, Arthur Levy, and Walter Levy. He is also survived by his twin brother Jay Levy of San Francisco and his sister Ellen Koenig of the Dominican Republic.
About Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapeutics. The company’s lead commercial product, NUZYRA® (omadacycline), which has launched and is available in the U.S., is a once-daily oral and intravenous antibiotic for the treatment of adults with community-acquired bacterial pneumonia and acute bacterial skin and skin structure infections. Paratek is also studying NUZYRA for the treatment of urinary tract infections (UTI).
Paratek has submitted a marketing authorization application of omadacycline in the European Union. Paratek has entered into a collaboration agreement with Zai Lab for the development and commercialization of omadacycline in the greater China region and retains all remaining global rights.
Under a research agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense, omadacycline also is being studied against pathogenic agents causing infectious diseases of public health and biodefense importance, including plague and anthrax.
SEYSARA ® (sarecycline) is an FDA-approved product with respect to which we have exclusively licensed certain rights in the United States to Almirall, LLC, or Almirall. SEYSARA is currently being marketed by Almirall in the U.S. as a new once-daily oral therapy for the treatment of moderate to severe acne vulgaris. Paratek retains development and commercialization rights with respect to sarecycline in the rest of the world.
Recognizing the serious threat of bacterial infections, Paratek is dedicated to providing solutions that enable positive outcomes and lead to better patient stories.
For more information, visit or follow @ParatekPharma on Twitter.
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