Viracta Therapeutics, Inc.

David Schenkein will step down from Agios Pharmaceuticals ’ board of directors at the end of the month “to devote more time to his other commitments,” according to its earnings report Thursday. He will continue as a strategic advisor to Agios on its clinical programs. Schenkein currently co-leads the life sciences investment team at Google ’s venture arm GV . Schenkein led Agios for a decade starting from 2009. In that span, he saw the company through two cancer drug approvals, though Agios later pivoted away from oncology to rare disease. The biotech has since sold its cancer portfolio and turned to developing a pyruvate kinase activator now known as Pyrukynd , for which it laid out plans Thursday to expand the drug’s indication into thalassemia and pyruvate kinase deficiency in children. Before Agios, Schenkein served as SVP of hematology and oncology at Genentech . In early 2019, Schenkein joined GV’s life sciences team. He remained as chairman of the board at Agios until 2022, when he transitioned to becoming just a board member. He currently also serves on the boards of Regeneron , Prime Medicine and Denali Therapeutics . — Lei Lei Wu Roivant’s chief commercial officer Amy Mahery has left to become the chief marketing officer at Moderna . The role was announced on LinkedIn by the Covid vaccine maker. Mahery spent more than two years at Roivant, helping bolster its reputation across industry to a legit biopharmaceutical company with business development and commercial chops. She helped oversee the launch of Vtama , an inflammation treatment that was approved by the FDA a couple of months before she joined. Vtama was acquired by Organon in 2024. Before Roivant, Mahery spent 18 years at EMD Serono , the healthcare arm of German pharma Merck KGaA . She began as a manager for neurology sales training and ascended to the top of the entire franchise, leaving as SVP and head of neurology and immunology franchises. She joins Moderna at a critical inflection point for the company. The vaccine business that propelled it to global recognition has now become a wet blanket of investment. Moderna’s second product, a vaccine for RSV, entered the second vaccination season slightly too late and only brought in $25 million in sales in 2024. Investors are closely watching for Phase 3 data of a cytomegalovirus vaccine, which could be a much needed-boost. Infections from the virus are the most common infectious cause of birth defects in the US, according to the CDC. Mahery will also be tasked with preparing for the launch of the company’s Merck -partnered cancer immunotherapy for high-risk melanoma patients. The treatment is in the middle of a Phase 3 trial for the patient population and would be Moderna’s first opportunity to diversify beyond vaccines and toward the much more lucrative and predictable cancer market. — Max Bayer → Iovance Biotherapeutics has tapped Dan Kirby as chief commercial officer almost exactly a year removed from its historic approval for its tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy Amtagvi . Kirby had held this title at Orca Bio since late 2020 and is the ex-commercial chief for Omeros . He had a 14-year career in sales and marketing at Amgen and would later join Juno Therapeutics as head of marketing and market access. When Celgene bought Juno in 2018, he was named head of US commercial CAR-T. “Dan has been instrumental in building and leading cell therapy commercial organizations since the earliest developments in the field,” Iovance’s interim president and CEO Frederick Vogt said in a statement . “He is the perfect fit for chief commercial officer as we grow the US launch of Amtagvi and prepare to enter new markets around the world while also expanding our Proleukin sales.” → Vertex said earlier this week that Stuart Arbuckle will retire as COO on July 1. Charlie Wagner , the CFO at Vertex since April 2019, will succeed Arbuckle as operating chief. Additionally, 12-year Vertex vet Duncan McKechnie will be chief commercial officer after serving as SVP and head of North America commercial operations. Lei Lei Wu has more on these changes, as well as tidbits from Vertex’s fourth-quarter and full-year report. → When Navigator Medicines raised the curtain on its $100 million Series A last August — co-led by RA Capital and Forbion — we didn’t know much about the leadership team beyond its medical chief Dana McClintock . That changed earlier this week, when Navigator recruited Tosh Butt as CEO and Khurem Farooq as chairman of the board. Butt is a GSK and AstraZeneca alum who had been president and general manager of Idorsia ’s US operations. He also spent two years with ChemoCentryx as COO before it was sold to Amgen for $3.7 billion in 2023. Farooq has a history of leading companies that have been acquired by large pharmas ( Gyroscope to Novartis , Aiolos Bio to GSK ) and he now runs Verdiva Bio , an obesity biotech that started the year with a $411 million haul . RA Capital and Forbion also had a hand in that Series A. → Kala Bio announced that CEO Mark Iwicki is resigning effective immediately, as president and operating chief Todd Bazemore takes over on an interim basis. Iwicki led Kala since 2015, back when it was Kala Pharmaceuticals . He’s an advisor at Atlas Venture and serves on the board of six biotech companies, according to his LinkedIn profile. Iwicki will continue to serve as chairman of Kala’s board. → Sue Dillon has stepped down as CEO of siRNA drug developer Aro Biotherapeutics and has been replaced by Purnanand Sarma . Dillon will still chair the board at Aro, which she co-founded with fellow J&J vet Karyn O’Neil . Sarma is the former president and CEO of Immunome , the company that ex- Seagen chief Clay Siegall has led since its merger with Morphimmune . Sarma also held the top spot at Taris Biomedical for nearly nine years before passing the baton to Tony Kingsley in 2019. J&J would buy Taris for an undisclosed amount shortly thereafter. Aro’s $41 million Series B in November 2023 was much smaller than the $100 million it had pursued. → Gerhard Koenig has replaced Sylvain Celanire as CEO of Belgian biotech Augustine Therapeutics . Celanire will lead R&D operations at Augustine, which has clinical aspirations “later this year” for its Charcot-Marie-Tooth drug AGT100216 . Koenig co-founded and was chief executive at Arkuda Therapeutics , an Atlas- and Pfizer -backed neuro specialist that handed over its lysosomal function enhancers to J&J for an unspecified upfront payment. Koenig led the neurodegeneration department at Bayer and has a seat on the board of directors at Vigil Neuroscience . → Several biotechs announced the departures of key execs in SEC filings: First, Nektar CMO Mary Tagliaferri “ resigned for personal reasons ” on Feb. 4, and former medical chief Brian Kotzin — an old hand with rezpeg — will return to the position on an interim basis; CytomX CBO and head of strategy Jeffrey Landau is out after nearly four years with the company; and Achilles Therapeutics co-founder Sergio Quezada has called it quits as CSO. → Aurion Biotech has named Donald Munoz as CFO in the midst of its IPO kerfuffle with Alcon . Munoz held the same role at NuCana since 2015, guiding the biotech to its IPO in 2017. Aurion’s quest for its own Nasdaq debut inched closer to reality when a Delaware judge ruled against Alcon’s attempt to block Aurion’s IPO efforts. Alcon “respectfully disagrees with that ruling and will appeal it,” a spokesperson told Endpoints News . → Kyowa Kirin subsidiary Orchard Therapeutics has named Robin Kenselaar as its new chief commercial officer. He joined the biotech in 2018 as the general manager of the Europe, Middle East and Africa regions. Kyowa Kirin bought the smaller rare disease biotech for roughly $387 million a little over a year ago. Kenselaar cut his teeth at Sanofi Genzyme , where he spent 15 years across roles and divisions, ascending to the head of the Europe region. → With ex- Carmot Therapeutics CEO Heather Turner now at the controls, LB Pharmaceuticals has selected Gad Soffer as CBO and Richard Silva as SVP of technical operations. Soffer was COO at Atara Biotherapeutics and Rheos Medicines , while Silva worked for Turner as Carmot’s SVP of pharmaceutical sciences. LB announced positive mid-stage data for its lead candidate LB-102 last month, but the real test will be in Phase 3, where many schizophrenia drugs have stumbled. → The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies , which spun out the MDMA biotech Lykos Therapeutics , is looking for a new executive director. Outgoing leader Kris Lotlikar will continue to serve on the group’s board and chair the philanthropic advisory committee. MAPS led the clinical development of MDMA before establishing the MAPS Public Benefit Corporation in 2014, which was rebranded to Lykos in 2023. The group says it’s looking to double down on “advocacy and movement building.” → Douglas Faller will become CMO at Imunon next week following a short stint in the same role at Bill Haney ’s Skyhawk Therapeutics . Faller was a scientific founder and chairman of the scientific advisory board at Viracta Therapeutics , the San Diego biotech that recently said it would close its doors . Shares $IMNN surged more than 150% when Imunon announced a Phase 2 win for its ovarian cancer drug IMNN-001 . → Boris Peaker has left TD Cowen to become managing director of Titan Partners ’ new equity research division. Peaker provided analysis at TD Cowen for nearly a decade as managing director of biotechnology equity research, regularly appearing in Endpoints’ coverage over the years. → Ideaya Biosciences , which is working on cancer drugs targeting solid tumors with a certain mutation known as MTAP deletion, has enlisted JP Morgan vet Joshua Bleharski as CFO. Bleharski had a 17-year stint with JP Morgan, culminating in his role as managing director and global co-head of biopharma, before joining the South San Francisco crew. Ideaya released early-stage data for its therapy back in October. → Catherine Isted will take over as CFO of Santhera on Feb. 24. Isted left BenevolentAI in July 2024 after less than a year as CFO “in a move to better enhance operational efficiency and strategic focus,” the company said in a press release. BenevolentAI CEO Joerg Moeller stepped down the following October. Isted will replace Andrew Smith , who has been finance chief at the Swiss biotech since April 2020. Santhera’s drug vamorolone was approved in October 2023 for Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients 2 years and older, and is marketed as Agamree . → There are several leadership changes at Cognito Therapeutics : Aetion vet Steve Worthy takes on the role of chief business & financial officer after becoming CBO in November; chief clinical & regulatory officer Robbert Zusterzeel spent nine years with the FDA and was VP of regulatory science & strategy for Woebot Health ; new commercial chief Deanna Angello has marketing experience from Pfizer and Genentech, and worked for Kite as executive director, business strategy & operations; and chief strategy officer Pritesh Shah had numerous job titles over an 11-year period at Novocure , including chief growth officer and chief commercial officer. → AI Proteins , which inked a deal with BMS in December, has now brought on Philip Brandish as chief development officer. Brandish joins the team after a stint as SVP at Bicycle Therapeutics . Before that, he oversaw early development of preclinical and clinical-stage oncology programs at Merck. → Lycia Therapeutics , which is developing protein degraders called LYTACs (lysosomal targeting chimeras) and raised a $106.6 million Series C last May, has introduced Chin Lee as CMO. In the past several years, the Eli Lilly and Genentech vet has had brief stops as medical chief at Theravance Biopharma , Connect Biopharma , and most recently, Allakos . → Along with Lee, another Allakos alum has found a new home after the California biotech laid off three-quarters of its staff: Mary Cromwell has moved on to Bluejay Therapeutics as SVP and head of technical operations. Cromwell had a 33-year career with Genentech that ended with her role as head of quality drug substance. She pivoted to Allakos in 2022 as SVP, process development and manufacturing, and she was elevated to chief technical officer the following year. Bluejay nabbed a $182 million Series C last May for its chronic hepatitis D and B programs. → Synedgen has picked up Laura Saward as CSO. Saward joins the Claremont, CA-based team from Adva Diagnostics , where she was EVP health and medical. Saward also had earlier gigs at Emergent BioSolutions and as CSO of Cangene . → Flagship ’s Ampersand Biomedicines has welcomed Bristol Myers Squibb veteran Elizabeth Mily to the board of directors. Mily just became CEO of The T1D Fund last month. Ampersand launched in March 2023 with the customary $50 million from Flagship and has teamed up with Pfizer on obesity treatments. → More news involving a high-profile Bristol Myers alum: Kristen Hege has joined the board of directors at AbbVie ’s T cell engager partner EvolveImmune . She was SVP, early clinical development, hematology, oncology & cell therapy at BMS before her retirement in March 2023. Hege is also a board member at Kelonia Therapeutics , Adaptimmune and Mersana Therapeutics . → Cytokinetics has added ex-Regeneron CFO Robert Landry to the board of directors. Landry had an 11-year run as finance chief before Christopher Fenimore succeeded him in February 2024. → Former Avidity Biosciences CSO Art Levin is bringing his expertise to the strategic advisory board at Codexis , which also includes John Maraganore and ex- National Resilience CEO Rahul Singhvi . Levin is on the board of directors at Avidity, Ascidian Therapeutics and Stoke Therapeutics . → Huntsville, AL-based Serina Therapeutics has appointed Jay Venkatesan to the board of directors. Venkatesan co-founded Alpine Immune Sciences and was president, chairman and CEO of Angion Biomedica .

EMERYVILLE, Calif., Jan. 15, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Metagenomi, Inc. (Nasdaq: MGX), a precision genetic medicines company committed to developing curative therapeutics for patients using its proprietary gene editing toolbox, today announced that Eric Bjerkholt, MBA, CFO of Mirum Pharmaceuticals, Inc., will join Metagenomi’s Board of Directors, serving on Metagenomi’s Audit and Compensation committees, effective January 27, 2025. “We are excited to welcome Eric to our Board of Directors,” said Brian C. Thomas, PhD, CEO and founder of Metagenomi. “His tremendous track record in the pharmaceutical industry as well as his experience in business development and capital formation will be an invaluable asset to Metagenomi as we continue to advance potentially curative treatment options for patients suffering from devastating disease.” “I am thrilled to join Metagenomi at this important time of innovation and clinical validation in the broader gene editing space,” said Eric Bjerkholt, MBA, CFO of Mirum Pharmaceuticals. “I am excited to collaborate with the Board and the management team, which brings together some of the brightest innovators and industry veterans, to accelerate our development of precision genetic medicines.” Mr. Bjerkholt brings extensive business leadership experience across a broad range of roles and is currently Chief Financial Officer of Mirum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. He joined Mirum from Chinook Therapeutics, Inc. where he also served as CFO overseeing financial reporting, planning and budgeting, internal controls, investor relations, facilities, and information technology functions. Chinook was acquired by Novartis AG. Prior to Chinook, Mr. Bjerkholt was CFO of Aimmune Therapeutics, which was acquired by Nestle Health Science. Previously Mr. Bjerkholt worked at Sunesis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., where in addition to CFO, he served in various capacities, including Executive Vice President of Corporate Development and Finance, Corporate Secretary and Chief Compliance Officer. Mr. Bjerkholt has also held senior executive finance roles at IntraBiotics Pharmaceuticals, Inc., LifeSpring Nutrition, Inc. and Age Wave, LLC and spent seven years in healthcare investment banking at J.P. Morgan & Company, Inc. Mr. Bjerkholt holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a Cand.oecon. from the University of Oslo in Norway. About Metagenomi Metagenomi is a precision genetic medicines company committed to developing curative therapeutics for patients using its proprietary, comprehensive metagenomics-derived toolbox. Metagenomi is harnessing the power of metagenomics, the study of genetic material recovered from the natural environment, to unlock four billion years of microbial evolution to discover and develop a suite of novel editing tools capable of correcting any type of genetic mutation found anywhere in the genome. Its comprehensive genome editing toolbox includes programmable nucleases, base editors, and RNA and DNA-mediated integration systems (including prime editing systems and clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat associated transposases (CAST)). Metagenomi believes its diverse and modular toolbox positions the company to access the entire genome and select the optimal tool to unlock the full potential of genome editing for patients. For more information, please visit https://​metageno​mi​.co. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward‐​Looking Statements This press release contains ​“forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, each as amended. Such statements, which are often indicated by terms such as ​“anticipate,” ​“believe,” ​“could,” ​“estimate,” ​“expect,” ​“goal,” ​“intend,” ​“look forward to,” ​“may,” ​“plan,” ​“potential,” ​“predict,” ​“project,” ​“should,” ​“will,” ​“would” and similar expressions, include, but are not limited to, any statements relating to our growth strategy and product development programs, including the timing of and our ability to conduct IND-enabling studies, make regulatory filings such as INDs, statements concerning the potential of therapies and product candidates, and any other statements that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could negatively affect our business, operating results, financial condition, and stock value. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those currently anticipated include: risks relating to our growth strategy; our ability to obtain, perform under, and maintain financing and strategic agreements and relationships; risks relating to the results of research and development activities; risks relating to the timing of starting and completing clinical trials; uncertainties relating to preclinical and clinical testing; our dependence on third party suppliers; our ability to attract, integrate and retain key personnel; the early stage of products under development; our need for substantial additional funds; government regulation; patent and intellectual property matters; competition; as well as other risks described in ​“Risk Factors,” in our most recent Form 10-K and our most recent 10-Qs on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in our expectations or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based, except as required by law, and we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Contact: Simon Harnest - CIO, SVP Investor Relations IR@​metagenomi.​co

Dec. 26, 2024 -- Viracta Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: VIRX), a clinical-stage precision oncology company focused on the treatment and prevention of virus-associated cancers that impact patients worldwide, today announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a process to explore a broad range of strategic alternatives. To maximize its cash runway while the Board conducts its review of strategic alternatives, Viracta has elected to close its ongoing pivotal Phase 2 clinical trial of Nana-val in relapsed/refractory EBV+ lymphomas (the NAVAL-1 trial). The company emphasized that its decision to voluntarily close the trial is not the result of any new safety finding. “As we continue to look for ways to conserve resources and maximize value for the company, we made the very difficult decision to close the NAVAL-1 study while the Board undertakes its strategic review,” stated Mark Rothera, President and Chief Executive Officer of Viracta. “I would like to thank the physicians and patients who participated in this important study, as well as the Viracta team members who worked so tirelessly on this program. I continue to believe that Nana-val has the potential to improve the treatment of relapsed/refractory EBV+ lymphomas, and I remain hopeful that it will one day be approved.” Viracta is making this announcement to inform shareholders and the public that the Company is engaging in discussions for strategic alternatives with the goal of maximizing value. Potential alternatives include, but are not limited to, a merger, licensing agreement, sale or other strategic transaction. There can be no assurance that the exploration of strategic alternatives will result in any agreements or transactions, or as to the timing of any such agreements or transactions. Viracta does not intend to discuss or disclose further developments regarding the exploration of strategic alternatives unless and until its Board of Directors has approved a specific action or otherwise determined that further disclosure is appropriate or required by law. Viracta is a clinical-stage precision oncology company focused on the treatment and prevention of virus-associated cancers that impact patients worldwide. Viracta’s lead product candidate is an all-oral combination therapy of its proprietary investigational drug, nanatinostat, and the antiviral agent valganciclovir (collectively referred to as Nana-val). Nana-val is currently being evaluated in multiple ongoing clinical trials, including a potentially registrational, global, multicenter, open-label Phase 2 basket trial for the treatment of multiple subtypes of relapsed or refractory (R/R) Epstein-Barr virus-positive (EBV+) lymphoma (NAVAL-1), as well as a multinational, open-label Phase 1b/2 clinical trial for the treatment of patients with recurrent or metastatic (R/M) EBV+ nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and other advanced EBV+ solid tumors. Viracta is also pursuing the application of its “Kick and Kill” approach in other virus-related cancers. The content above comes from the network. if any infringement, please contact us to modify.