Senior management enhancements to add significant pharmaceutical experience to help TxCell drive products through development
Valbonne, France, November 30, 2015 – TxCell SA (FR0010127662 – TXCL), a biotechnology company developing innovative, personalized cell immunotherapies using regulatory T-cells to treat severe chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, today announces it is strengthening its management team with the recruitment or the promotion of five new vice presidents in key functions.
These appointments bring a wealth of significant experience in leadership within the biopharmaceutical industry. They also bring a proven track record of success in cell therapy as well as wider areas of the life science sector, including microbiology, cell physiology, immunotherapy and genetic vectorization. These appointments will add additional commercial business function support to TxCell including project management and business development.
TxCell completed a strategic review in October 2015, and decided to focus on its key strengths of research, clinical development and new partnerships. It will outsource all of its existing and future clinical and commercial manufacturing operations to contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs). In addition, TxCell has retained, as well as further strengthen its critical process development capabilities and GMP-proving activities with key recruitments and opening of a dedicated laboratory.
“TxCell has now entered a new stage of the development of the company, concentrating on discovery, research, clinical development and manufacturing process improvement. We have set ourselves very ambitious targets, including bringing at least three new products from our two platforms, including innovative Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR)-engineered Treg cell products, to clinical development within five years,” said Stephane Boissel, CEO, TxCell. “As a result, TxCell has made five new senior management appointments. The combination of these appointments gives us an additional depth and breadth of leadership experience to further speed up development of our products in line with our targets.”
Appointments effective immediately:
Nathalie Belmonte - VP Research Operations
Nathalie Belmonte, 40, is appointed VP Research Operations. Nathalie has more than 10 years of experience working in the field of cell therapy from both an academic and biotech position. Specifically, she has significant experience with the development of mesenchymal stem cells, hematopoietic stem cells and T cells in the fields of regenerative medicine and immunotherapy. Before joining TxCell in 2006 as a scientist, she was a scientist in a French academic laboratory (INSERM) dedicated to the development of cell therapies for fascioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy. Prior to this, Nathalie was a scientist at the San Raffaele Hospital at the Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (TIGET) in Milan, working in the field of hematopoietic stem cells and muscle regeneration. She started her career working in a French academic lab in Nice (CNRS) working on embryonic stem cells and stem cells from adipose tissue. Nathalie has a PhD in Cellular and Molecular Biology at the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis.
Liliane Guilmin - VP Project Management
Liliane Guilmin, 50, is appointed VP Project Management. Lilian has more than 20 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical industry. This includes over 10 years in project management across all stages of drug development and brand lifecycle as well as within different therapeutic areas. Prior to joining TxCell in 2013 as project global team leader, she was responsible for portfolio management at OM Pharma, the infectious disease/OTX franchise of Vifor Pharma, where she managed 3 programs of several projects. Previously, Liliane held several roles at Nicox SA where she implemented its project management organization, conducted several projects (phase 1/2/3), participated in several regulatory briefing packages as well as to one FDA advisory committee meeting, and contributed to in-licensing product candidates’ evaluation. Liliane began her career at Theramex, a company of Merck KgAa group, dedicated to women’s health and gynecology. Liliane obtained a postgraduate diploma in microbiology from the University of Aberdeen after an MSc in Cell Physiology and Immunology from the University of Nice.
Pierre Heimendinger - VP Process Development
Pierre Heimendinger, 53, is appointed VP Process Development. Pierre has over 29 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry and specifically in the field of biotechnology, immunotherapy, vaccines, plasma-derived medicinal products and viral vectors. Pierre gained his experience of manufacturing processes of development and analytical methods of control through numerous positions he has held in research and development, industrialization processes, production and quality control for products for Phase 1, 2, and 3 clinical trials and for commercial products on the market. He has improved the robustness of products as well as control strategies as well as enrolling new drugs in clinical trials as guidelines alter. He has achieved this by implementing quality by design and process analytical technology by the development of regulatory proceedings. Before joining TxCell in 2015, Pierre held a senior director position at Transgene SA where he led the pharmaceutical development team and was responsible for the development of new processes, analytical methods and technology transfer immunotherapy treatments using viral vectors. He started his career at Sanofi Pasteur where he held several positions in R&D and production, then at Mérieux and Octapharma. Pierre has a doctor of pharmacy degree complemented by a postgraduate in cellular and genetic toxicology from the University of Paris VII.
Appointments effective in January 2016:
Catherine Mathis - VP Regulatory Affairs
Catherine Mathis, 50, is appointed VP Regulatory Affairs. Catherine has more than 25 years’ experience working in clinical research and regulatory affairs with pharma and biotech companies, including in the areas of immunology and oncology. Specifically, she developed the strategies of innovative healthcare products from Phase 1 to phase 3 studies with an excellent product knowledge concerning US and EU regulations. She conducted many regulatory processes with interactions with the US FDA and the European health authorities (EMA and national competent authorities). It has also included interactions with European payers (HTA bodies). She acquired expertise in the regulation of personalized medicine by developing companion diagnostic assays associated with innovative immunotherapy products. Prior to joining TxCell in 2015, Catherine served as a senior director, for Voisin Consulting the international consulting company. She also advised several biotech and pharma companies developing gene and cell therapy products. Catherine also served for several years as a senior director, head of regulatory affairs at Transgene, a French biotech company developing immunotherapy products based on recombinant viruses. She started her career at Ipsen/Beaufour and Sanofi Pasteur in clinical research. Catherine completed pharmacy studies and then earned a master degree in applied and basic toxicology from the University of Paris VII.
Maud Bouvier - VP Business Development
Maud Bouvier, 38, is appointed VP Business Development. Maud brings 10 years of experience and expertise in the biotech business development field. Prior to joining TxCell in 2015, she has served as alliance manager in Erytech Pharma, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative therapies for rare forms of cancer and orphan diseases. Maud has managed and actively contributed to the strategic alliances with Teva and Orphan Europe/Recordati Group. She joined Erytech in 2005 as a competitive intelligence team manager and then served for several years as a business development. She received her PhD in molecular biology from Joseph Fourier University in France and a master degree in management of biotechnology companies from the Grenoble Management School.
About TxCell: http://www.txcell.com
TxCell is a publicly listed biotechnology company that develops platforms for innovative, personalized T cell immunotherapies for the treatment of severe chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases with high unmet medical need. TxCell is the only clinical stage cellular therapy company dedicated to the science of regulatory T lymphocytes (Tregs). Tregs are a recently discovered T cell population for which anti-inflammatory properties have been demonstrated. Ovasave®, TxCell’s lead product candidate, is currently in a phase IIb clinical trial in refractory Crohn’s disease patients. Col-Treg, its second product candidate, for the treatment of autoimmune uveitis, should enter clinical trials in 2016. Based in Sophia-Antipolis, France, TxCell is listed on Euronext Paris and currently has 62 employees.
