Appili Therapeutics Inc., the Halifax company dedicated to fighting infectious diseases, has named Yoav Golan, who’s been an advisor to Appili since the company’s inception, as its first Chief Medical Officer.

In a statement, Armand Balboni, company CEO, said that Golan brings over 25 years of infectious disease expertise to the role. He’s recently served as an attending physician in the Division of Geographic Medicine and Infectious Diseases at Tufts Medical Center in Boston and has also been an associate professor at Tufts University School of Medicine.

The company, which has listed on the TSX Venture Exchange and recently raised $10.25 million by selling shares and warrants to mainly institutional investors, has undergone a series of changes to senior executives and its board.

The latest announcement comes as Appili’s four pipeline products progress toward active clinical trials. The company’s focus is expanding to include antimicrobial programs, the statement said.

In his new role, Golan will be responsible for clinical development strategy and execution across Appili’s pipeline. He will be a leadership resource for applying medical ethics and scientific rigour to Appili’s clinical programs.

Golan has conducted extensive research, publishing several book chapters and over 50 peer-reviewed studies in journals such as The New England Journal of Medicine and The Lancet Infectious Diseases, the statement said.

His recent research includes studies on C. difficile infections as well as invasive candidiasis. He’s been involved in the development of multiple anti-infectives, the statement said. He’s a member of numerous medical societies, including the Infectious Disease Society of America and the American Society for Microbiology. He’s a graduate of the Hadassah School of Medicine at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Israel.