BlueWillow Biologics Names Leading Viral Infectious Disease Experts to Scientific Advisory Board

Robin Isaacs, M.D., Akiko Iwasaki, Ph.D., and Steve Projan, Ph.D., to help lead scientific direction of development of intranasal vaccines that elicit mucosal and systemic immunity

ANN ARBOR, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- BlueWillow Biologics, Inc., a privately held clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing intranasal vaccines, today announced the formation of the Company’s Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) with three leading viral infectious disease experts. The SAB will provide strategic and scientific counsel to BlueWillow’s clinical programs.

The members of the BlueWillow Biologics SAB include:

• Robin Isaacs, M.D. – Dr. Isaacs was Chief Medical Officer of Entasis Therapeutics for 4 years. Prior, he held positions of increasing responsibility at Merck & Co., Inc., most recently serving as Vice President and Therapeutic Area Head, Vaccine Clinical Research. During his 18 years at Merck, Dr. Isaacs was involved with the worldwide development, regulatory submission and approval of several anti-infective, antiviral and vaccine products. He holds an M.B., B.H.B and M.D. from the University of Auckland.
• Akiko Iwasaki, Ph.D. – Dr. Iwasaki is a Waldemar Von Zedtwitz Professor at the Yale University Department of Immunobiology and Department of Molecular Cellular and Developmental Biology. She is currently an Investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Iwasaki’s research focuses on the mechanisms of immune defense against viruses on mucosal surfaces, and her laboratory explores the relationship between viral infections and adaptive immunity. She holds a B.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Toronto. Dr. Iwasaki completed her Postdoctoral Fellowship at the National Institutes of Health Intramural Research Program.
• Steve Projan, Ph.D. – Dr. Projan is a Principal at Beat the Reaper, LLC. Previously, he served as a Senior Vice President of R&D in the Infectious Diseases & Vaccines Innovative Medicines unit (iMED) at MedImmune, where he led the strategy, prioritization and advancement of the company’s infectious disease and vaccine portfolio. Prior to MedImmune, Dr. Projan served as Vice President and Global Head of Infectious Diseases at the Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research. He previously spent 15 years at Wyeth in roles of increasing responsibility, most recently as Vice President of Biological Technologies. He holds a B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as well as an M.A. and Ph.D. from Columbia University.

“We are proud to have such a distinguished team of scientific experts serve as members of our Scientific Advisory Board, underscoring their belief in our intranasal vaccines to elicit mucosal immunity,” commented Chad Costley, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of BlueWillow Biologics. “Their diverse expertise and experience in the field of infectious diseases will be integral as our team advances our research and clinical programs.”

About BlueWillow Biologics

BlueWillow Biologics is developing and enabling a new generation of safe and effective nasal vaccines to protect global populations from respiratory infections, sexually transmitted diseases and food allergies. Our novel intranasal adjuvant platform activates mucosal immunity, the body’s first line of defense, while also inducing systemic immunity. We are a clinical-stage company advancing a pipeline of proprietary programs including COVID-19, pandemic flu, RSV, HSV, anthrax and peanut allergy. www.bluewillow.com

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