Healthcare >> CEO Interviews >> October 17, 2003

Stanley Crooke – Isis Pharmaceuticals Inc (isis)

Dr. STANLEY T. CROOKE is Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Isis is a development stage biopharmaceutical company that is focused on a new paradigm in drug discovery, antisense oligonucleotides. Since Dr. Crooke and his colleagues founded Isis in 1989, the company has grown rapidly, completing its initial public offering in May 1991, and has reported broad progress in antisense technology and its rapid conversion to therapeutic product opportunities. Isis was the first company to commercialize an antisense drug and has achieved a number of important corporate collaborative relationships. Dr. Crooke is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Antisense Therapeutics Limited, Toorak, Victoria, Australia; EPIX Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts; Axon Instruments, Inc., Union City, California, Northern Arizona University Arts and Sciences Advisory Council, Flagstaff, Arizona, and BIOCOM, San Diego, California. He is a member of the IBC Advisory Council, Current Drugs Advisory Board, the Editorial Advisory Board of Journal of Drug Targeting and Antisense Research and Development, the Editorial Board of Gene Therapy and Molecular Biology. He is also Editor-in-Chief of Current Opinion in Anticancer Drugs and Section Editor for Biologicals and Immunologicals for Expert Opinion on Investigational Drugs. He has been appointed by the American Association for Cancer Research to serve as a member of the California State Legislative Committee. Prior to founding Isis, Dr. Crooke was President of Research and Development for SmithKline Beckman Corporation (SKB). He also coordinated the research and development activities of SKB including its instruments, diagnostics, animal health and clinical laboratory businesses. Prior to joining SKB, Dr. Crooke helped establish the anticancer drug discovery and development program at Bristol Myers, which succeeded in bringing to market a significant number of drugs. Dr. Crooke received his MD and Ph.D. from Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas and his BS in Pharmacy from Butler University, Indianapolis, Indiana. Profile
TWST: Could you explain antisense technology in layman's terms and how

it is applied in Isis Pharmaceuticals' operations?

Dr. Crooke: Antisense is a new technology for drug discovery