Decibel Therapeutics (Nasdaq: DBTX), a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to discovering and developing transformative treatments to restore and improve hearing and balance, today announced the appointment of William (Bill) H. Carson, M.D., as Chairman of the Board of Directors.

Dr. Carson, a board-certified psychiatrist, brings over 20 years of experience in the biopharmaceutical industry. He was most recently the President and CEO of Otsuka Pharmaceutical Development & Commercialization, Inc. (OPDC), leading the development and regulatory approvals of Otsuka’s global compounds, including Abilify Maintena^®, Rexulti^®, Samsca^® and Jynarque^®. He also oversaw the approval of Abilify MyCite^®, the first FDA-approved digital medicine.

Bill currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of OPDC and is also the Chairman of the Board of the Sozosei Foundation, a newly established Otsuka charitable organization focused on decriminalization of mental illness. He serves on the boards of Excision BioTherapeutics, Saama and Annexon Biosciences and is Trustee of the non-profit Internet2. He is Board Chair Emeritus of the Sphinx Organization, which advocates for parity and inclusion in the arts.

“Bill is an eminent figure in the biopharmaceutical community with a proven track record of advancing therapies through clinical development, regulatory approval and commercialization. His appointment demonstrates our ambition to establish Decibel at the forefront of innovation in treatments to restore and improve hearing and balance,” said Laurence Reid, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer. “Bill is passionate about delivering life-changing therapies in areas of unmet medical need and improving access to the highest quality care for medically underserved patients.”

“I am honored to join Decibel at this exciting time for the company, when the inner ear is emerging as a new frontier of gene therapy,” said Dr. Carson. “I am looking forward to helping Decibel as it continues to march toward the clinic with potentially transformative gene therapies in an area of medicine that has had a paucity of innovation in recent years.”

Dr. Carson holds an A.B. degree from Harvard College and earned his medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. He completed his residency training in psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association, the National Medical Association and the Executive Leadership Council. Dr. Carson was named to Savoy magazine’s 2018 list of the Top 100 Most Influential Blacks in Corporate America. Prior to joining the biopharmaceutical industry, Dr. Carson was an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina.

About Decibel Therapeutics

Decibel Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to discovering and developing transformative treatments to restore and improve hearing and balance, one of the largest areas of unmet need in medicine. Decibel has built a proprietary platform that integrates single-cell genomics and bioinformatic analyses, precision gene therapy technologies and expertise in inner ear biology. Decibel is leveraging its platform to advance gene therapies designed to selectively replace genes for the treatment of congenital, monogenic hearing loss and to regenerate inner ear hair cells for the treatment of acquired hearing and balance disorders. Decibel’s pipeline, including its lead gene therapy program, DB-OTO, to treat congenital, monogenic hearing loss, is designed to deliver on our vision of a world in which the privileges of hearing and balance are available to all. For more information about Decibel Therapeutics, please visit www.decibeltx.com or follow us on Twitter. 

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