UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): July 10, 2015
ATYR PHARMA, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 001-37378 | 20-3435077 | ||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) |
(Commission File Number) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
3545 John Hopkins Court, Suite #250
San Diego, CA 92121
(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)
(858) 731-8389
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:
| ¨ | Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| ¨ | Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| ¨ | Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
On July 10, 2015, Frederic Chereau notified aTyr Pharma, Inc. (the “Company”) of his intention to resign from his current position as President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company, effective July 13, 2015.
Item 7.01 Regulation FD Disclosure.
In connection with Mr. Chereau’s resignation, the Company issued a press release on July 13, 2015. A copy of the press release is attached as Exhibit 99.1.
The information furnished pursuant to this Item 7.01 in this Current Report on Form 8-K, including Exhibit 99.1, shall not be deemed “filed” for the purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (“Exchange Act”) or otherwise subject to the liability of that section, nor shall such information be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Exchange Act or the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, regardless of the general incorporation language of such filing, except as shall be expressly set forth by specific reference in such filing.
Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
| Exhibit No. |
Description | |
| 99.1 | Press release dated July 13, 2015 | |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| Date: July 13, 2015 | aTyr Pharma, Inc. | |||||||
| By: | /s/ JOHN D. MENDLEIN | |||||||
| John D. Mendlein, Ph.D. | ||||||||
| Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman | ||||||||
EXHIBIT INDEX
| Exhibit No. |
Description | |
| 99.1 | Press release dated July 13, 2015 | |
Exhibit 99.1
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
| Contact: |
||
| Marcy Graham | Jessica Rowlands | |
| Vice President, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications mgraham@atyrpharma.com 858-223-1163 |
Feinstein Kean Healthcare jessica.rowlands@fkhealth.com 202-729-4089 |
ATYR PHARMA ANNOUNCES CHANGE IN LEADERSHIP
SAN DIEGO – July 13, 2015 – aTyr Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: LIFE), a biotherapeutics company engaged in the discovery and development of Physiocrine-based therapeutics to address severe rare diseases, today announced the resignation of President and Chief Operating Officer Frederic Chereau to pursue other opportunities, effective immediately.
“On behalf of aTyr, I would like to thank Mr. Chereau for his efforts, and wish him the best in his future endeavors,” said John Mendlein, Ph.D., CEO and executive chairman of aTyr Pharma.
About aTyr Pharma
aTyr Pharma is engaged in the discovery and clinical development of innovative medicines for patients suffering from severe rare diseases using its knowledge of Physiocrine biology, a newly discovered set of physiological modulators. The Company’s lead candidate, Resolaris™, is a first-in-class intravenous protein therapeutic for the treatment of rare myopathies with an immune component. Resolaris™ is currently in a Phase 1b/2 clinical trial in adult patients with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD). Trials are planned in additional indications, including early onset FSHD and limb-girdle muscular dystrophy (LGMD) 2B. Trials are also planned for indications in interstitial lung disease (ILD). To protect this pipeline, aTyr built an intellectual property estate comprising 45 issued or allowed patents and over 240 pending patent applications that are solely owned or exclusively licensed by aTyr. aTyr’s key programs are currently focused on severe, rare diseases characterized by immune dysregulation for which there are currently limited or no treatment options. The Company was founded by Professors Paul Schimmel, Ph.D., and Xiang-Lei Yang, Ph.D., two leading aminoacyl tRNA synthetase scientists at The Scripps Research Institute.
###