IFM Therapeutics Appoints Leading Oncology, Immunology, And Chemistry Experts To Founding Scientific Advisory Board

Advisors include members of the National Academy of Sciences and Howard Hughes Medical Institute

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--IFM Therapeutics today announced the appointment of seven renowned scientists to its scientific advisory board. The company, which recently closed a $27 million Series A financing, is developing a portfolio of first-in-class small molecules targeting the innate immune system for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases.

“Their expertise and guidance will be instrumental as we advance our existing preclinical programs and expand our pipeline of novel immunomodulators.”

“We are delighted to have such an accomplished and distinguished group of scientists join our team,” said Shomir Ghosh, Chief Scientific Officer at IFM. “Their expertise and guidance will be instrumental as we advance our existing preclinical programs and expand our pipeline of novel immunomodulators.”

Members of the IFM scientific advisory board are:

• Diane Mathis (Chair), PhD, Professor of Microbiology and Immunobiology, Harvard Medical School; Member, National Academy of Sciences
• Erick M. Carreira, PhD, Head, Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, ETH Zürich
• Douglas T. Fearon, MD FRS FMedSci, Professor, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory; Walter B. Wriston Professor of Pancreatic Cancer Research, Weill Cornell Medicine; Emeritus Sheila Joan Smith Professor of Immunology, University of Cambridge; Member, National Academy of Sciences
• Nir Hacohen, PhD, Director, Center for Cancer Immunology, Massachusetts General Hospital; Harvard Medical School; Broad Institute
• William L. Jorgensen, PhD, Sterling Professor of Chemistry, Yale University; Member, National Academy of Sciences
• Jonathan C. Kagan, PhD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School; Shwachman Chair in Gastroenterology, Staff Scientist, Boston Children's Hospital
• Alexander Rudensky, PhD, Chairman, Immunology Program, Sloan-Kettering Institute; Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute; Director, Ludwig Center for Cancer Immunotherapy; Tri-Institutional Professor at MSKCC, The Rockefeller University and Cornell University; Member, National Academy of Sciences

Diane Mathis, chair of the SAB, commented, “IFM’s novel approaches to target the innate immune system hold great promise. The SAB is uniformly impressed with the rigor and progress of the company and we look forward to helping IFM realize the potential of this exciting area of biology.”

“In addition to the founding scientific team, our SAB members add significant depth in several areas that are key to the company’s mission including chemistry, cancer biology, immunology, and bioinformatics. We are honored and fortunate to be working with such a talented group of advisors as we build the company,” noted CEO and co-founder, Gary D. Glick.

About IFM Therapeutics
IFM Therapeutics is a privately held biopharmaceutical company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Seeded by Atlas Venture, the company was founded in 2015 by an international group of preeminent scientists and physicians to discover and develop small molecules that modulate novel targets in the innate immune system as next generation therapies for cancer, autoimmunity, and inflammatory disorders. In June of 2016, IFM closed a $27 million Series A financing led by Atlas Venture and Abingworth, with participation from Novartis. Drugs in the IFM portfolio are expected to significantly improve upon standard of care agents in terms of efficacy and safety. For more information, please visit www.ifmthera.com.