AstraZeneca announced that John Patterson, executive director, Development will retire from the company in March 2009.

Anders Ekblom is appointed to the role of executive vice president, Development with effect from 1 January 2009, when he will also join AstraZeneca's senior executive team. He is currently vice president and head of Global Clinical Development at AstraZeneca.

Anders will assume full management responsibility for the Development organisation at the end of January when John steps down from his operational position. John will retire from the Board of AstraZeneca PLC on 31 March 2009.

AstraZeneca chief executive officer, David Brennan commented, "John has made an important and lasting contribution to the business over the course of his career with AZ. Under his leadership, the productivity and efficiency of AstraZeneca's drug development has improved significantly; we now have the largest pipeline in our history and a clear focus on what is required to deliver it."

"I am delighted to welcome Anders to our senior executive team. He brings strong leadership and valuable experience to the role, having worked in both Discovery and Development, most recently leading substantial improvements in Clinical Development."

John joined ICI Pharmaceuticals in 1975 and for five years was responsible for the clinical development of breast cancer treatment, tamoxifen. He took various leadership roles in Clinical Research in the UK, Germany and the US before being appointed medical director. His subsequent roles have included head of Europe and then the International Sales and Marketing Organisation (ISMO) for Zeneca. At the formation of AstraZeneca he became executive vice president, Product Strategy & Licensing and, later, Business Development. In December 2004 John was appointed to the main AstraZeneca Board as executive director responsible for Development.

John is a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and the Academy for Medical Science. He is a director of the British Pharmaceutical Group and a non-executive director at Cobham PLC. He is a former president of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry.

Anders joined Astra in 1993 from the Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska Hospital in Stockholm, where he was a senior lecturer and director for the Perianesthetic Unit. His previous roles at AstraZeneca have included: Vice President of Strategy, Portfolio and Alliances; head of Respiratory and Inflammation; head of Pain Control. Most recently he has been responsible for Global Clinical Development, the largest single function in R&D, operating across drug development and life cycle management. In this role he has led initiatives to increase the quality and speed of clinical development, while reducing cost, improving productivity and cutting cycle times.

Anders is a director of the board of Albireo Ltd. He is an Associate Professor of Physiology at the Karolinska Institute, a medical doctor board certified in Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care, and a doctor of dental surgery.