Inhaled drug developer MannKind Corporation has announced the appointment of Ajay Ahuja as Executive VP and Chief Medical Officer. Ahuja was most recently Development and Launch Leader at Kardigan Bio; his previous experience includes executive roles at Idorsia Pharmaceuticals, GSK, Allergan, Pfizer, and Takeda.
United Therapeutics recently exercised an option for development of a second dry powder inhalation that it acquired as part of a 2018 agreement related to the development of Tyvaso treprostinil DPI for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension. MannKind is also preparing for a potential launch of its Afrezza insulin DPI for the treatment of diabetes in pediatric patients. The company’s pipeline includes MNKD-101 clofazimine inhalation suspension and MNKD-201 nintedanib DPI.
MannKind CEO Michael Castagna commented, “Ajay’s deep expertise in medical affairs, clinical development, and global strategy, combined with his background as a practicing physician, will be instrumental as we continue to advance our pipeline and expand our impact in endocrine and orphan lung diseases. In particular, his experience in the cardiometabolic area will be instrumental to our future. We are thrilled to welcome him to MannKind’s executive team.”
Ahuja said, “MannKind’s dedication to innovation and patient-centric solutions deeply resonates with my commitment to advancing transformative therapies. I look forward to contributing to the company’s mission and helping shape the future of the organization and working to benefit patients.”
Read the MannKind Corporation press release
