Brussels, Belgium, 20 March, 2017 – 7:30 am – ASIT biotech (ASIT - BE0974289218), a Belgian clinical-stage
biopharmaceutical company focused on the research, development and future commercialization of
breakthrough immunotherapy products for the treatment of allergies, announces the appointment of Gerd
Zettlmeissl as its new Chairman of the Board, Béatrice De Vos having stood down to focus on new projects.
Gerd Zettlmeissl, an independent director of ASIT biotech since 2011, was, until that same year, the CEO of
Austrian company Intercell AG, an innovative vaccine company that merged with French company Vivalis in
2013 to create Valneva, the European leader in vaccines and antibodies. Mr. Zettlmeissl successfully
accompanied Intercell’s international development, and in particular the global registration of a vaccine
against Japanese encephalitis and the signing of strategic partnerships with prominent pharmaceutical
companies. He holds a doctoral degree in biochemistry from the University of Regensburg, Germany, and did
a post-doctoral fellowship in virology at the Institut Pasteur in Paris. Since 1985, Mr. Zettlmeissl has held
various R&D and managerial positions at a number of international pharmaceutical companies, and was
notably Managing Director of Chiron Behring, a commercial leader in the field of vaccines in Germany.
Gerd Zettlmeissl, says: “I am particularly enthusiastic about being able to continue contributing, as Chairman,
to the development and future marketing of the next generation of immunotherapy products in order to meet
the needs of patients who are seeking significantly less restrictive treatments. I would also like to thank all of
the Board’s members, and the ASIT biotech teams, for the trust they have put in me. I firmly believe in the
Company’s prospects, and pledge to make the most of my substantial experience in the global development
of new therapeutic solutions.”
Thierry Legon, CEO of ASIT biotech, adds: “We would like to thank Béatrice De Vos for her remarkable
contribution to ASIT biotech’s clinical progress since 2013, the year she was appointed Chairwoman. Her
availability and her considerable expertise in terms of the clinical development of drug candidates have been
valuable assets for the Company and the success of its IPO in May 2016. We respect her decision, and wish
her every success and fulfillment in her future professional and personal projects. Gerd Zettlmeissl’s arrival as
Chairman will ensure continuity in the excellence of our governance and the pertinence of ASIT biotech’s
strategy, which I firmly believe will enable us to successfully meet the many challenges that await us in 2017
on which we are actively working.”
