Cydan Appoints Chief Business Officer
“Cydan’s focus on accelerating therapies for patients facing rare diseases requires broad expertise, and we have assembled a diverse, collaborative team of scientists, physicians and entrepreneurs who are instrumental in the complex endeavor of launching new companies in the orphan disease space,” said Chris Adams, PhD, MBA, founder and chief executive officer of Cydan. “Imran is a critical thinker with deep scientific knowledge in a range of therapeutic areas and technologies; has a proven track record of identifying, evaluating and investing in healthcare companies; and has a passion for helping patients with rare genetic diseases. His experience perfectly complements the Cydan team, which will allow us to execute our business model effectively.”
“I am thrilled to join Cydan and leverage my experience to help patients with rare diseases,” said Imran Babar, PhD, chief business officer of Cydan. “I believe the team and investors are exceptional and I look forward to joining with them to create innovative companies that have a meaningful impact on patient lives.”
Dr. Babar was most recently a vice president on the private equity team at OrbiMed Advisors, where he spent around five years evaluating investment opportunities, sourcing new deals, and creating value for portfolio companies. He is also co-founder and chief scientific officer for Rare Genomics Institute, a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to helping rare disease patients get access to cutting-edge research. Prior to that, Dr. Babar worked as an associate at Cowen & Company on the biotechnology equity research team and as a molecular biology researcher at Yale University, where he worked in the laboratory of Dr. Frank Slack, a pioneer in the microRNA field.
Dr. Babar earned his BA in biology from Carleton College and his PhD in Molecular Biology from Yale University. His work has appeared in top publications, including PNAS, Nature, Cancer Research and Cell.
About Cydan
Cydan is an orphan drug accelerator dedicated to delivering therapies that will significantly improve the lives of people living with rare genetic diseases. The company evaluates new experimental therapies and advances those with the highest potential to be disease modifying treatments. Cydan’s goal is to launch new companies focused on developing promising therapies for rare genetic diseases with high unmet medical need. Cydan was founded in 2013 by a management team with extensive drug discovery, clinical development and business development experience and is financed by leading life sciences investors including New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Pfizer Venture Investments, Lundbeckfonden Ventures, Longitude Capital, and Alexandria Venture Investments. Cydan is based in Tech Square in Cambridge, Mass. For more information, visit www.cydanco.com or contact the company at info@cydanco.com.