Cambridge, UK, 17 June 2025 – Maxion Therapeutics (“Maxion”), a biotechnology company developing antibody-based KnotBody® drugs for ion channel and G protein coupled receptor (GPCR)-driven diseases, today announces the appointment of Dr. Stefan Härtle as Chief Development Officer, effective immediately.
Stefan brings almost 20 years of pharmaceutical research and development experience to Maxion, most recently serving as Head of Clinical Pharmacology at MorphoSys, which was acquired by Novartis for $2.9 billion in February 2024. Throughout his career, Stefan has led numerous projects from early research through Phase 4 clinical trials and played a key role in the development of several therapeutics in late-stage development or approved drugs including the anti-CD38 antibody felzartamab and the anti-CD19 antibody tafasitamab.
Prior to joining Maxion, Stefan played a key role on the Scientific Advisory Board for Human Immunology Biosciences (HI-Bio), which was successfully acquired by Biogen in July 2024. His expertise spans early and late clinical development including clinical pharmacology, toxicology, PK/PD simulations and bioanalysis complemented by a deep understanding of quality assurance, CMC and health authority processes. Earlier in his career Stefan held various positions in the DMPK field at Boehringer Ingelheim.
Stefan holds a PhD in Immunology and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich.
Arndt Schottelius, MD PhD, CEO, commented: “We are delighted to welcome Stefan to Maxion at this pivotal time in our company's development. His exceptional track record in advancing novel therapeutics from discovery through clinical development aligns perfectly with our mission as we prepare to move our KnotBody® platform into the clinic.”
Chief Development Officer Dr. Stefan Härtle, said: “I am excited to join Maxion Therapeutics and work alongside their talented team to advance their groundbreaking KnotBody® technology. Throughout my career, I've been passionate about developing innovative therapies that address significant unmet medical needs, and Maxion's approach to targeting ion channels and GPCRs represents a tremendous opportunity to create truly transformative treatments.”
In March 2025, Maxion announced that it had raised $72 million (£58 million) in an oversubscribed Series A financing to advance its KnotBody® pipeline and platform.
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For more information, please contact:
Maxion Therapeutics
Arndt Schottelius, MD PhD, CEO
E-mail: communications@maxion.co.uk
ICR Healthcare
Mary-Jane Elliott / Ashley Tapp / Kate Hall
E-mail: MaxionTherapeutics@icrinc.com
About Maxion Therapeutics
Maxion Therapeutics is a biotechnology company developing antibody-based drugs for previously untreatable ion channel and G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR)-driven diseases, including autoimmune conditions, chronic pain, and cardiovascular disease. The Company is developing a pipeline of potentially first- and best-in-class therapeutics using its proprietary KnotBody technology to generate potent, selective, and long-acting therapeutics by combining naturally occurring mini-proteins (‘knottins’) with antibodies using state-of-the-art phage and mammalian display technologies. Maxion was founded in 2020 by highly respected biotech entrepreneurs and scientists Dr John McCafferty, CTO and Dr Aneesh Karatt-Vellatt, CSO. Dr McCafferty previously co-invented antibody phage display, which was the subject of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to his co-inventor Sir Gregory Winter. Maxion’s portfolio and growth is being advanced by a team of highly experienced leaders in the discovery and development of antibody-based drugs. The Company is based near Cambridge, UK and is backed by international blue-chip investors. For more information, please visit: https://www.maxiontherapeutics.com/
