Fred Kurland has been appointed vice president, finance and chief financial officer at Xoma, Ltd. Mr. Kurland will be responsible for directing the company's financial strategy, accounting, financial planning and investor relations functions.
   
"Fred is a seasoned financial executive with over 30 years of experience in biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies including Aviron/MedImmune, Protein Design Labs and Syntex/Roche," said Steve Engle, chairman and chief executive officer of Xoma. "He will be a very valuable addition to Xoma's executive team, particularly as our anti-IL-1 beta blocker Xoma 052 advances into Phase II trials."
   
Prior to joining the company, Mr. Kurland served as chief financial officer of Bayhill Therapeutics, Corcept Therapeutics and Genitope. From 1998 to 2002, Mr. Kurland served as senior vice president and chief financial officer of Aviron, which was acquired by MedImmune in 2001. From 1996 to 1998, he was vice president and chief financial officer of Protein Design Labs, an antibody design company, and from 1995 to 1996, he served as vice president and chief financial officer of Applied Immune Sciences.