SpyBiotech Appoints Seasoned Biotech Executive Mark Leuchtenberger as Chief Executive Officer
— Novel Vaccine Company Expands Leadership Team and Establishes US Presence —
Oxford, UK and Cambridge, MA (July 11, 2022) — SpyBiotech, a British biotechnology company with a novel vaccine platform technology that can target infectious diseases, cancer, and chronic diseases, has appointed Mark Leuchtenberger as its Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He also joins the Board of Directors. Sumi Biswas, the company’s co-founder, remains President and a Director and becomes Chief Scientific Officer (CSO). With the addition of Leuchtenberger, SpyBiotech establishes its presence in the United States with an office in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Mark Leuchtenberger recently served as Executive Chairman for Aleta Biotherapeutics and previously as CEO of Brooklyn ImmunoTherapeutics and Chairman, President and CEO of IRX Therapeutics. He has over 20 years of experience as a CEO in the biopharmaceutical industry and has led companies through private financings and initial public offerings, taken products from research to IND and through to commercialization, and achieved M&A exits. Leuchtenberger was President and Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors at Chiasma (NASDAQ: CHMA), Acusphere, Inc., Rib-X Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (now Melinta Therapeutics, Inc.), Targanta Therapeutics Corporation and Therion Biologics Corporation. Prior to Therion, he was a senior officer at Biogen Inc., where he led the late-stage development of the company’s flagship product Avonex and its commercialization in North America and internationally in 65 countries. He is a director and past chairman of the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council Board of Directors, was a co-founder of Albor Biologics, Inc. and Alvos Therapeutics, Inc., and currently serves as Chairman of the Board for Neurosense Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NRSN). He received his MBA from the Yale School of Management and his BA from Wake Forest University.
“It is an honor to join the team at SpyBiotech as it advances its first proprietary SpyTag/SpyCatcher protein superglue enabled VLP-based vaccine candidate into clinical trials,” said Mark Leuchtenberger. “We have great ambition to utilize the benefits of our unique platform across various applications to address major human health challenges around the world.”
Based on science developed at the University of Oxford, SpyBiotech’s novel vaccine platform is based on a proprietary protein “superglue” technology which binds antigens to vaccine delivery platforms in a way which minimizes delivery risk and enhances immunogenicity and efficacy. The technology is potentially one of the safest and most effective ways to create vaccines: cost-effective and highly scalable. This makes it ideal for use against infectious diseases in challenging environments, such as in the developing world, but also with potential application in non-infectious disease settings such as cancer. SpyBiotech has the exclusive rights from the University of Oxford to apply, commercialize and sub-license the SpyTag/SpyCatcher technology and related technologies in vaccine development. The company’s lead candidate is against human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), with clinical studies planned for 2023. The company sees a range of development opportunities in infectious diseases, cancer and beyond.
Sumi Biswas co-founded SpyBiotech in March 2017 and has been the company’s CEO and CSO since inception. She has led scientific and strategic development during this period. With this expansion, Biswas continues as President and CSO.
“When we founded SpyBiotech, we envisioned building a commercial company centered on our unique technology platform that enables us to circumvent the challenges of binding antigens to virus-like particles and other vaccine delivery platforms,” said Biswas. “With this visionary leadership team, SpyBiotech will continue to develop our technology along innovative pathways to prevent serious disease.”
“As we progress toward the clinic and expand upon our technology, Mark’s deep expertise will be invaluable,” said Board Chair Lutz B. Giebel, Ph.D. “SpyBiotech stands at the forefront of vaccine innovation. Our expanded leadership team and footprint in the United States demonstrate strong progress as we continue to scale up our company.”
Last year the company announced $32.5 million in a Series A equity financing. Under Leuchtenberger’s leadership, SpyBiotech intends to advance clinical development of its internal lead candidate, targeting human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), using its novel vaccine technology platform based on its proprietary SpyTag/SpyCatcher protein “superglue” technology.
About SpyBiotech
SpyBiotech is a biotechnology company with a novel vaccine platform technology to target infectious diseases, cancer and chronic diseases. The company was spun out of the University of Oxford in 2017 by Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE) and has raised $39mm to date. Based on science developed at Oxford, SpyBiotech’s novel vaccine platform is based on a proprietary protein “superglue” technology which binds antigens to vaccine delivery platforms in a way which minimizes delivery risk and enhances immunogenicity and efficacy. The technology is potentially one of the safest and most effective ways to create vaccines: cost-effective and highly scalable. This makes it ideal for use against infectious diseases in challenging environments, such as in the developing world, but also with potential application in non-infectious disease settings such as cancer. SpyBiotech has the exclusive rights from the University of Oxford to apply, commercialize and sub-license the SpyTag/SpyCatcher technology in vaccine development. www.spybiotech.com
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