Irvine-Based Cortex Pharmaceuticals Hires CEO

Cortex Pharmaceuticals Inc., a start-up firm that is developing drugs for treating age-related diseases and brain disorders, said Friday that it has hired a new chief executive officer with 32 years’ experience in the drug business.

Alan A. Steigrod, who was also appointed company president, is considered an expert in organizing clinical trials, an important phase in the company’s quest to eventually market its pharmaceuticals.

He also has years of experience in guiding applications through the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is credited with helping transform British-based pharmaceutical company, Glaxo Inc., from a $14-million-a-year firm with 210 employees to a $2-billion firm with 4,900 workers.

“He brings a real element of credibility to our effort at Cortex,” said Chief Financial Officer Scott Hagen, adding that Steigrod will begin his new job next week. “He will be walking through the door for the first time (as CEO) on Monday.”

Steigrod replaces Jay Glass, one of the 3-year-old company’s founding investors who served as interim chief executive. Glass will remain on the company’s board of directors.

Hagen said his new boss is experienced in making and closing deals, an important aspect to the company, which relies on licensing agreements for income because it has not had federal approval to sell any of its drugs in progress.

The licensing agreements allow other companies to test the Cortex drugs for laboratory use. Such tests will eventually be turned over to the FDA for final marketing approval.

For instance, the company received $500,000 in an agreement with Alkermes Inc., based in Cambridge, Mass., to commercialize a line of Cortex’s new drugs, still undergoing testing. Companies with Cortex agreements would share in profits when the drugs are approved.

That deal netted Cortex a profit of $163,000, or 1 cent a share, for the second quarter ending Dec. 31, contrasted with a $781,000 loss, or 6 cents a share, for the same quarter last year. The company reported that it posted revenue of $1 million from licensing agreements similar to the Alkermes deal for the second quarter, contrasted with no revenue in the second quarter in the previous year.

For the first six months of the fiscal year, the company posted a loss of $226,000, or 2 cents a share, contrasted with a loss of $1.5 million, or 12 cents a share, for the same period the year before.

Revenue for the first six months was $1.5 million, contrasted with no revenue for the same period a year ago.