Additions strengthen management team and position company to advance
portfolio of medicines targeting RNA-mediated diseases into the clinic
SAN DIEGO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Expansion Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company advancing
transformative medicines to patients with RNA-mediated diseases,
announced the continued expansion of its management team with the
appointment of two seasoned leaders to support key functions, including
Paddy Shivanand, Ph.D., as Vice President of Chemistry Manufacturing and
Controls (CMC); and Mark Fielden, Ph.D., as Vice President of
Nonclinical Development. Expansion also named world-renowned scientist
and pioneer in RNA research, Prof. Lynne E. Maquat, Ph.D., of the
University of Rochester, to its Scientific Advisory Board.
“Expansion Therapeutics was created to bring transformative medicines to
patients with severe RNA-mediated diseases, such as myotonic dystrophy,
for which there are currently no approved therapies,” said Kevin
Forrest, Ph.D., Co-founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of
Expansion Therapeutics. “We have made significant progress over the past
year as we continue to accelerate our growth and advance our pipeline.
The additions of Paddy and Mark to our management team and Lynne to our
scientific advisory board – all who share our vision and passion – will
be instrumental to our efforts to develop novel treatments for patients
with the most urgent medical needs.”
New Appointments Strengthen Management Team
As Vice President of Chemistry Manufacturing and Controls (CMC) at
Expansion, Dr. Shivanand will lead all CMC operations. Previously, Dr.
Shivanand was Co-founder of JDP Pharma Consulting where she provided
expertise in formulation development, process development, analytical
sciences and CMC regulatory activities for numerous pharmaceutical
companies. She has more than 20 years of experience in pharmaceutical
product development including positions at ALZA Corporation and Johnson
& Johnson.
Throughout her career, Dr. Shivanand has worked on the development of
more than 25 medicines, leading to successful regulatory submissions and
product approvals. She currently serves as Adjunct Faculty at Purdue
University in the Biotechnology Innovation and Regulatory Science
program. Dr. Shivanand earned a B. Pharm degree from the University of
Mumbai and her M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Pharmaceutical Sciences, both
from the University of Cincinnati.
“I am truly honored to work alongside such a talented group of leaders,
scientists, and founders,” said Dr. Shivanand. “I believe Expansion has
great potential to deliver upon an unmet need for therapies that target
a range of serious diseases caused by RNA. This is a field that is
growing and brimming with excitement and I’m thrilled to be on this
journey with Expansion.”
With more than 15 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry,
Dr. Fielden will focus on nonclinical development of Expansion’s
pipeline. Previously, he served as Scientific Director at Amgen where he
led a team of toxicologists and an investigative toxicology lab
contributing to the discovery and development of numerous drugs across a
variety of indications in the metabolic, cardiovascular, neuroscience
and oncology areas.
Dr. Fielden is a Diplomat of the American Board of Toxicology. He
received a B.S. degree in Biological Sciences from the University of
Guelph, Canada, and his Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Toxicology from
Michigan State University where he studied nuclear receptor biology and
endocrine disruptors.
“I’m excited to join the Expansion management team and help guide
nonclinical and early development efforts,” said Dr. Fielden. “I look
forward to using my experience and passion to help Expansion realize the
full potential of its pipeline of novel small molecules targeting RNA.”
Addition to Scientific Advisory Board Complements Current Expertise
The appointment of Prof. Maquat to Expansion’s scientific advisory board
complements the expertise of its current members who are leaders in the
field of RNA-targeted small molecule chemistry and biology, RNA folding
and structural biology.
Matthew D. Disney, Ph.D., Scientific Founder of Expansion Therapeutics
said, “Prof. Maquat is a world leader and pioneer in studying and
elucidating the intricacies of RNA processing pathways. We look forward
to working together and leveraging her keen intellect to advance our
programs.”
Prof. Maquat is the J. Lowell Orbison endowed Chair and Professor of
Biochemistry and Biophysics in the School of Medicine and Dentistry,
Director of the Center for RNA Biology and Chair of Graduate Women in
Science at the University of Rochester. After obtaining her Ph.D. in
Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and undertaking
post-doctoral work at the McArdle Laboratory for Cancer Research, Prof.
Maquat joined Roswell Park Cancer Institute before moving to the
University of Rochester.
“I am extremely impressed with Expansion’s strong capabilities and
assets, unique RNA-targeting technology platform, and commitment to
advancing novel, impactful therapies,” said Prof. Maquat. “I look
forward to partnering with the Expansion team so we can take a
meaningful step in the development of treatments that could have a
significant impact on the lives of people with severe RNA-mediated
diseases.”
Prof. Maquat is also an elected Fellow of the American Association for
the Advancement of Science (2006), and an elected Member of the American
Academy of Arts and Sciences (2006), the National Academy of Sciences
(2011) and the National Academy of Medicine (2017). She was a Batsheva
de Rothschild Fellow of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities
(2012-2013) and has received numerous awards. These include the William
C. Rose Award from the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular
Biology (2014), the Canada Gairdner International Award (2015), the
international RNA Society Lifetime Achievement Award in Service (2010)
and in Science (2017), the Vanderbilt Prize in Biomedical Science
(2017), the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
(FASEB) Excellence in Science Award (2018), and the Wiley Prize in
Biomedical Sciences (2018).
About Expansion Therapeutics
Expansion Therapeutics is a drug discovery and development company
pursuing the vast potential of small molecule medicines for RNA-mediated
diseases. Based on exclusive worldwide rights to groundbreaking research
from the laboratory of Matthew D. Disney, Ph.D., at The Scripps Research
Institute, Expansion has assembled the intellectual property, know-how,
and proprietary enabling technologies and tools necessary to facilitate
the creation of potent and specific small molecule binders of RNA.
Through this unique platform, Expansion is building a portfolio of novel
RNA-targeted drug candidates with activity across a broad number of
disease indications. The company’s initial development focus is on
therapies for patients with expansion repeat diseases who have limited
and unsatisfactory treatment options. Expansion is based in San Diego,
California, and Jupiter, Florida. For more information, visit www.expansionrx.com.
Contacts
Christy Curran
Sam Brown Inc.
christycurran@sambrown.com
615.414.8668