Hemispherx fires founder, chairman William A. Carter

Hemispherx Biopharma Inc., Philadelphia, said it terminated its founder, chairman, and CEO William A. Carter, 77, and reorganized the management team "to provide effective and competent leadership" and position the "company to achieve its commercial goals and increase stockholder value."

The company named William M. Mitchell, professor of pathology, microbiology and immunology at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, as chairman of Hemispherx' board. David R. Strayer will be chief scientific officer, and Adam Pascale was named chief financial officer.

"We are taking significant action, including the termination of Dr. Carter, to have unified commitment to the goals set by the board and to preserve capital," said Hemispherx president Thomas K. Equels. "This requires a strong financial austerity plan combined with a skilled approach to bringing Ampligen and Alferon to their full potential."

Hemispherx' experimental medicines Ampligen to treat diseases and disorders of the immune system and Alferon LDO for avian influenza and other viral diseases have not been approved by the Federal Drug Administration for general use and are "legally available only through clinical trials," the company said. Alferon N has been approved in the United States and Argentina to treat genital warts in adults.

Hemispherx said it would seek "senior co-development partners with the capital and expertise" to "fully commercialize" the potential therapeutic aspects of Ampligen and Alferon N.

The company, which went public in 1996, has offices at 1 Penn Center in Center City and a manufacturing plant in New Brunswick, N.J. Hemispherx was founded in 1990 by Carter and has 32 employees.

The stock was up 2 cents to 17 cents in afternoon trading.

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