Changing Faces

This month’s boardroom activity across biotech, diagnostics, CROs, and digital health companies highlights a strategic push for scientific excellence, commercial acumen, and global leadership. From former Pfizer executives to academic pioneers in gene therapy and drug delivery, here’s a look at the latest additions to Boards of Directors and Scientific Advisory Boards.

Two Pfizer vets bring clout to Boards. A year after his departure from Pfizer and after joining two other Boards back in March, Dr Mikael Dolsten, former chief scientific officer and president of Pfizer Research & Development, has joined the Board of Directors at BenchSci, a Toronto-based AI drug discovery platform company. Over his 16-year tenure at Pfizer, Dolsten oversaw the approval of more than 36 medicines and vaccines and played a pivotal role in the company’s COVID-19 response. Additionally, Dr Adam Gilbert has joined the Scientific Advisory Board at PhoreMost, a next-generation targeted protein degradation (TPD) company. Gilbert brings over 30 years of experience in biopharma, drug discovery, and business development, most recently serving as executive director and external accelerator lead at Pfizer.

Draig Therapeutics appoints industry veteran as Chair. Douglas E Williams has been named Chair of the Board of Directors at Draig Therapeutics, a Welsh clinical-stage biotech focused on neuropsychiatric diseases. Williams has held executive roles at Biogen, ZymoGenetics, Amgen, and Seattle Genetics, and contributed to the development of blockbuster therapies including Enbrel, Tecfidera, and Spinraza. His appointment brings seasoned leadership to Draig’s mission of transforming mental health treatment.

Tract Bio expands Board with oncology and research leaders. Boston-based Tract Bio has added two new members to its Board of Directors. Dr Mark J Adler, founder and former CEO of the San Diego Cancer Center, and Dr Kristiina Vuori, president and CEO of Sanford Laboratories for Innovative Medicines, a not-for-profit biomedical research institution.

Galapagos strengthens Board with pharma executives. Galapagos, a biotech with operations across Europe, the US, and Asia, has welcomed two new members to its Board of Directors: Dawn Svoronos, who spent 23 years at Merck (MSD outside North America), including as President of Europe and Canada, and Jane Griffiths, who held senior executive roles over a decade at Johnson & Johnson, including Company Group Chair of Janssen EMEA.

Transgene welcomes new Board member. Transgene, a Strasbourg-based biotech developing virus-based immunotherapies for cancer, also added a former Janssen exec to its Board: Emmanuelle Quilés, who recently served as worldwide vice president for cardiovascular, metabolism and pulmonary hypertension at Janssen Global Commercial Strategy Organisation. She succeeds Philippe Archinard, who is retiring from the Board.

Quotient Sciences forms Scientific Advisory Board. Quotient Sciences, a UK-based drug development and manufacturing accelerator, has established a new Scientific Advisory Board featuring:

Dr Dominique Demolle, CEO of Cognivia and a former Eli Lilly executive
Dr Alastair Coupe, an independent consultant with 30+ years at Pfizer and 3M Health Care
Dr Colin Rowlings, SVP of CMC at Actio Biosciences
Prof. Yvonne Perrie, Chair in Drug Delivery at the University of Strathclyde and an expert in vaccine and drug delivery systems

This diverse Board will guide Quotient’s scientific strategy across formulation and manufacturing.

Evox Therapeutics adds gene therapy experts to Advisory Board. Oxford-based Evox Therapeutics has appointed three leading scientists to its Scientific Advisory Board:

Michael Benatar, Professor of Neurology and ALS research leader at the University of Miami
Sarah Tabrizi, Professor of Neurology at UCL and Director of the UCL Huntington’s Disease Centre
Fyodor Urnov, Professor of Molecular Therapeutics at UC Berkeley and Director at the Innovative Genomics Institute

Their expertise in neurodegeneration and gene editing will support Evox’s mission to transform treatment for rare neurological diseases.

Citryll builds immunology-focused Scientific Advisory Board. Citryll, a Netherlands biotech targeting immune-mediated inflammatory diseases, has also formed a new Scientific Advisory Board bringing together global expertise in immunology, inflammation, and drug safety. It includes:

Tim Hammond, head of safety at various companies and former VP of safety assessment at AstraZeneca UK
John Hamilton, Professor of Medicine at the University of Melbourne and Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science
Christian Lood, Associate Professor at the University of Washington
Paul Kubes, Professor at Queen’s University and Canada Excellence Research Chair

That’s it for our Boards round-up for July. We’ll be back soon with hires from August. In the meantime you can send your own hires to editorial@pharmaphorum.com for inclusion in this column.