Transcept Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of proprietary products that address important therapeutic needs in the field of neuroscience.
Glenn A. Oclassen Chief Executive Officer, President, Director
In 1985 Mr. Oclassen founded Oclassen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a dermatologic
drug development and marketing company. He served as a director from the
company's inception, was President and CEO from 1985 until 1991, and became
Chairman of the Board of Directors in January 1991. He served in this role until
Watson Pharmaceuticals acquired the company in February 1997. He was also a
founder and Chairman of the Board of NextDerm Inc., a venture that was acquired
in 1999 by Procyte Corp.
From 1984 to 1985 Mr. Oclassen served as President and Chief Operating
Officer of Pharmaquest Corporation, a pharmaceutical development consulting
company. From 1982 to 1984, he was a partner in the Peachtree Creek Consulting
Group, a firm providing marketing consulting services to health care and
consumer products companies. In 1977, Mr. Oclassen founded the Neutrogena
Dermatologics division of Neutrogena Corp. and served as President until 1982.
He was employed by Allergan Pharmaceuticals from 1971 until 1977 where he was
concurrently Director of Marketing for OTC ophthalmic products, and General
Manager of the Dermatology Division.
Mr. Oclassen previously held marketing and sales positions with Westwood
Pharmaceuticals, which was founded by his father Charles A. Oclassen, and with
Wm. H. Rorer Pharmaceuticals. He received a B.S. in zoology from San Diego State
University in 1965. Mr. Oclassen is a member of the Cutaneous Therapy Society
and the North American Clinical Dermatology Society. He was previously elected as
the first non-physician member of the Executive Committee of the Dermatology
Foundation.
Dr. Singh has 15 years of leadership and management experience in the
development, commercialization and marketing of pharmaceutical products at
Procter & Gamble, G. D. Searle, and Watson Pharmaceuticals. He
developed and patented formulations for Vicks® Formula 44® and Nyquil® and was involved in
the clinical development and FDA approvals of prescription drugs such as
Flagyl® ER, Covera-HS®, Low-Ogestrel®, Celebrex®, and Watson's generic nicotine
chewing gum. Dr. Singh is a winner of several P&G company awards for
personal and team excellence and has over 30 publications in the field of
formulations and clinical pharmacology. Dr. Singh holds a PhD in
Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Alberta, Canada.
Thomas P. Soloway Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Prior to joining Transcept, Mr. Soloway spent nine years working in the
private equity industry for Montreux Equity Partners. While there, he assisted
in the developing, structuring and financing of multiple early stage venture
capital transactions. Mr. Soloway held responsibility throughout the spectrum of
the investment process including due diligence activities, structuring,
negotiation, deal documentation, post investment monitoring, and consulting to
portfolio companies as both an advisor and Board member. Mr. Soloway received a
Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurial Studies from the University of Southern
California and a Masters of Business Administration from Georgetown
University.
Dr. Davar brings to Transcept over 15 years of industry experience. Most recently, he served at ALZA Corporation as Senior Director, Compound Development Team Leader and Research Fellow leading multidisciplinary product development teams responsible for approval of Jurnista® (OROS® hydromorphone) in Europe and for registration of INVEGA™ (OROS®paliperidone) in the United States. Dr. Davar has 10 patents pending and several publications in the areas of oral drug delivery and pharmaceutics. He received his PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Maryland and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Prior to joining Transcept in December 2005, Mr. Dyer served as Vice
President, Operations for SkinMedica, a specialty pharmaceutical company. He has
over 35 years experience in the pharmaceutical industry, including senior
management positions with PacifiCare Health Systems, Allergan, Neutrogena,
Oclassen Pharmaceuticals and Watson Laboratories. Mr. Dyer attended the
University of Washington School of Pharmacy and California State University,
Long Beach. He holds a Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine
University.
Joseph T. Kennedy Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary
Mr. Kennedy has over 15 years of legal experience representing large pharmaceutical companies, developing life science companies, investment banks and venture capital firms. Mr. Kennedy served as Vice President and Acting Chief Legal Officer and previously, Chief Corporate Counsel, of Eyetech Pharmaceuticals. His work at Eyetech included transitioning the company from private to public through its initial public offering, legal matters related to the company's development and marketing collaboration with Pfizer, pharmaceutical industry and SEC compliance, and the sale of the company. Previously, Mr. Kennedy served as Vice President and US Counsel, Corporate Business Development, with Élan Corporation. At Élan, he helped acquire, and establish and manage collaborations with, life science companies internationally and participated in the company's sale of multiple assets that raised over $2 billion in a restructuring. Mr. Kennedy practiced law with Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, where he represented investment banks and public and private developing companies in matters including initial public offerings, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and general corporate matters. Mr. Kennedy serves as a Business Advisory Board member to Fountain Healthcare Partners, an international life science venture capital fund. He earned his JD at New York Law School where he served as Editor-in-Chief of The New York Law School Journal of International and Comparative Law, and his BS in Economics from Fairfield University.
Prior to joining Transcept, Mr. Moore served as Vice President of the Neuroscience Therapeutic Area for Organon Biosciences (now Schering Plough) and was responsible for the creation and building of a Neuroscience Business Unit. Previously, Mr. Moore served as Vice President, U.S. Marketing, Effexor XR® as well as Vice President, Global Strategy, Depression Portfolio for Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Moore holds a BS in Pharmacy from the University of Florida and a BA in Chemistry from the University of South Florida.
Dr. Sakai has over ten years industry experience as well as a diverse research background in academia and at the National Institutes of Health. She has led the Regulatory Affairs group at Transcept since 2005. Prior to joining Transcept, Dr. Sakai was a member of the regulatory teams at Onyx and Peninsula Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Sakai received a BS in Microbiology from Cornell University and a PhD in Cell Biology from the University of California at Berkeley.
Prior to joining Transcept, Ms. Wortzman spent nine years at Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in various financial management positions, most recently as Vice President, Finance and Administration where she oversaw the areas of Accounting, Information Technology, Human Resources, and Facilities. Ms. Wortzman is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive) in the State of California. She holds a B.A. in Political Science from Syracuse University.
Investors 
In 1985 Mr. Oclassen founded Oclassen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a dermatologic
drug development and marketing company. He served as a director from the
company's inception, was President and CEO from 1985 until 1991, and became
Chairman of the Board of Directors in January 1991. He served in this role until
Watson Pharmaceuticals acquired the company in February 1997. He was also a
founder and Chairman of the Board of NextDerm Inc., a venture that was acquired
in 1999 by Procyte Corp.
Dr. Singh has 15 years of leadership and management experience in the
development, commercialization and marketing of pharmaceutical products at
Procter & Gamble, G. D. Searle, and Watson Pharmaceuticals. He
developed and patented formulations for Vicks® Formula 44® and Nyquil® and was involved in
the clinical development and FDA approvals of prescription drugs such as
Flagyl® ER, Covera-HS®, Low-Ogestrel®, Celebrex®, and Watson's generic nicotine
chewing gum. Dr. Singh is a winner of several P&G company awards for
personal and team excellence and has over 30 publications in the field of
formulations and clinical pharmacology. Dr. Singh holds a PhD in
Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Alberta, Canada.
Prior to joining Transcept, Mr. Soloway spent nine years working in the
private equity industry for Montreux Equity Partners. While there, he assisted
in the developing, structuring and financing of multiple early stage venture
capital transactions. Mr. Soloway held responsibility throughout the spectrum of
the investment process including due diligence activities, structuring,
negotiation, deal documentation, post investment monitoring, and consulting to
portfolio companies as both an advisor and Board member. Mr. Soloway received a
Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurial Studies from the University of Southern
California and a Masters of Business Administration from Georgetown
University.
Dr. Davar brings to Transcept over 15 years of industry experience. Most recently, he served at ALZA Corporation as Senior Director, Compound Development Team Leader and Research Fellow leading multidisciplinary product development teams responsible for approval of Jurnista® (OROS® hydromorphone) in Europe and for registration of INVEGA™ (OROS®paliperidone) in the United States. Dr. Davar has 10 patents pending and several publications in the areas of oral drug delivery and pharmaceutics. He received his PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Maryland and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Prior to joining Transcept in December 2005, Mr. Dyer served as Vice
President, Operations for SkinMedica, a specialty pharmaceutical company. He has
over 35 years experience in the pharmaceutical industry, including senior
management positions with PacifiCare Health Systems, Allergan, Neutrogena,
Oclassen Pharmaceuticals and Watson Laboratories. Mr. Dyer attended the
University of Washington School of Pharmacy and California State University,
Long Beach. He holds a Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine
University.
Mr. Kennedy has over 15 years of legal experience representing large pharmaceutical companies, developing life science companies, investment banks and venture capital firms. Mr. Kennedy served as Vice President and Acting Chief Legal Officer and previously, Chief Corporate Counsel, of Eyetech Pharmaceuticals. His work at Eyetech included transitioning the company from private to public through its initial public offering, legal matters related to the company's development and marketing collaboration with Pfizer, pharmaceutical industry and SEC compliance, and the sale of the company. Previously, Mr. Kennedy served as Vice President and US Counsel, Corporate Business Development, with Élan Corporation. At Élan, he helped acquire, and establish and manage collaborations with, life science companies internationally and participated in the company's sale of multiple assets that raised over $2 billion in a restructuring. Mr. Kennedy practiced law with Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, where he represented investment banks and public and private developing companies in matters including initial public offerings, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and general corporate matters. Mr. Kennedy serves as a Business Advisory Board member to Fountain Healthcare Partners, an international life science venture capital fund. He earned his JD at New York Law School where he served as Editor-in-Chief of The New York Law School Journal of International and Comparative Law, and his BS in Economics from Fairfield University.
Prior to joining Transcept, Mr. Moore served as Vice President of the Neuroscience Therapeutic Area for Organon Biosciences (now Schering Plough) and was responsible for the creation and building of a Neuroscience Business Unit. Previously, Mr. Moore served as Vice President, U.S. Marketing, Effexor XR® as well as Vice President, Global Strategy, Depression Portfolio for Wyeth Pharmaceuticals. Mr. Moore holds a BS in Pharmacy from the University of Florida and a BA in Chemistry from the University of South Florida.
Dr. Sakai has over ten years industry experience as well as a diverse research background in academia and at the National Institutes of Health. She has led the Regulatory Affairs group at Transcept since 2005. Prior to joining Transcept, Dr. Sakai was a member of the regulatory teams at Onyx and Peninsula Pharmaceuticals. Dr. Sakai received a BS in Microbiology from Cornell University and a PhD in Cell Biology from the University of California at Berkeley.
Prior to joining Transcept, Ms. Wortzman spent nine years at Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in various financial management positions, most recently as Vice President, Finance and Administration where she oversaw the areas of Accounting, Information Technology, Human Resources, and Facilities. Ms. Wortzman is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive) in the State of California. She holds a B.A. in Political Science from Syracuse University.
