InVivo Therapeutics Holdings Corp., a drug delivery firm with an emphasis on innovative technologies for the treatment of spinal cord injuries (SCI) and neurotrauma conditions, announced Friday that Lou Vaickus, MD, has been recruited to the position of interim Chief Medical Officer (CMO), effective starting on October 15, 2013, for a contractual period of one year.

Dr. Vaickus is currently the President of akta Pharmaceutical Development LLC. Previously he served as Vice President and head of Clinical Development, Global Medicines Development and Affairs at Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Prior to joining Vertex, Dr. Vaickus was CMO of Tolerx, Inc. from 2002 to 2011. From 1998 to 2002, he served as Senior Vice President, Medical Affairs and R&D at Sunovion, formerly known as Sepracor and as Medical Director at EMD Serono, formerly known as Ares Serono from 1993 to 1998. In these held positions, Dr. Vaickus successfully oversaw the development of products in various therapeutic arenas.

Interim CEO of InVivo, Michael Astrue stated, “We are excited to have Dr. Vaickus join us at this critical juncture in the company’s development. With his judgment and experience, he will help us bring our scaffold product into the clinic, he will help us define the best opportunities for our hydrogel technology, and he will help us enter into the types of partnerships that create value for a successful drug delivery company.”

Eric Woodard, MD is set to continue his longstanding collaboration with InVivo as both a consultant and member of the Scientific Advisory Board.

For more details, please visit www.invivotherapeutics.com

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