News

William Lee, PhD, Executive Vice President Research, Gilead Sciences

Mack Mitchell, MD, VP Medical Affairs & EVP Health System UTSW; CMO Southwestern HRPN

Howard Jaffe, MD, President and COB of the Gilead Foundation. Former CMO Gilead Sciences

The Amygdala founders have deep and varied expertise in drug development and the addiction space. In addition to our individual experiences, we are all former members of the executive management team that built CV Therapeutics into a FIPCO and developed two first-in-class NCEs approved in the US and EU and achieved guideline status in both territories with current global revenues over $1.6B.

Ivan Diamond, MD, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer and Founder

  • Former Senior Advisor, Gilead Sciences; VP Neurology Research, CVT;  Vice Chair, UCSF Department of Neurology; Founding Director, UCSF Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center

Peter Strumph, President and Chief Executive Officer and Founder

  • Former SVP Operations, Portola Pharmaceuticals; CEO, Codexis; CEO, Nile Therapeutics; SVP Operations, CVT; Operations Planning, Biogen; Lieutenant, US Navy

Aug 1, 2017 - Amygdala Neurosciences Initiates Phase 1b Clinical Study of ANS-6637, the First-In-Class Selective ALDH2 Inhibitor in Development as a Treatment for Substance Use Disorder​

Lou Lange, MD, PhD, Executive Chairman and Founder

  • General Partner Asset Management; Senior Advisor to CEO, Gilead Sciences
  • Former Founder Chairman & CEO, CV Therapeutics; Chief of Cardiology and Professor of Medicine at Jewish Hospital Washington University

Feb 16, 2017 - Amygdala Neurosciences Acquires GS-6637 from Gilead Sciences

​​GS-6637 utilizes a novel pathway for the potential treatment of substance and behavior based addictions

Brent Blackburn, PhD, Chief Development Officer

  • Former CEO, Rapidscan Pharma; SVP R&D, CVT

The Team

In addition to Lou Lange (Executive Chairman), Ivan Diamond, and Peter Strumph, the BOD includes:

ANS-6637 is in clinical development as an Opioid Sparing agent and treatment for Smoking Cessation and other substance use disorders

Amygdala Neurosciences is developing ANS-6637, a novel Phase-2 ready, highly selective and reversible ALDH2 inhibitor for the treatment of opioid, smoking, alcohol and cocaine substance use disorders. Based on a published mechanism of action in the brain that prevents pathophysiologic dopamine surge and associated craving without changes to basal dopamine, ANS-6637 has the potential to prevent relapse and the acquisition of drug seeking conditioned response.


In published preclinical studies, ALDH2 inhibition reduced self administration, cue- and drug-primed relapse in alcohol, cocaine, heroin, nicotine, methamphetamine and binge eating models and also demonstrated anxiolytic properties in models of stress.


ANS-6637 is ready for outpatient Phase-2 studies. Over 130 human subjects have been exposed to ANS-6637. In Phase-1, ANS-6637 demonstrated safety and tolerability even during heavy alcohol consumption.​

​A Biopharmaceutical Company Focused on the Development and Commercialization of First-In-Class Drug Candidates for Addiction Disorders

The Board of Directors

Adrienne MacMillan, Chief Financial Officer and Founder

  • Former CFO, Rapidscan Pharma Solutions; VP Finance, CVT