2nd November 2016
Portfolio
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Artios Pharma Ltd
(“Artios” or “the Company”)
Strengthened Management Team with the Appointment of Dr Simon Boulton as Vice President Science Strategy
Cambridge, UK, 2 November 2016. Artios Pharma Ltd., a newly launched private company focussed on developing novel cancer treatments targeting the DNA Damage Response (DDR), today announces it has strengthened its management team with the appointment of Dr Simon Boulton as Vice President (VP) Science Strategy.
Simon is an award-winning British scientist at the Francis Crick Institute in London who has made important contributions over the past 20 years to the understanding of DNA repair and the treatment of cancer resulting from DNA damage. As a result of his ground-breaking work, Simon has received a number of prestigious accolades, notably the EMBO Gold Medal and the Paul Marks Prize for Cancer Research. In addition to his current role at the Francis Crick Institute, Simon is an honorary Professor at University College London, an elected member of EMBO and a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences. He has given numerous prize lectures, including the Royal Society Francis Crick Prize lecture and the Mendel Lecture. Simon established the DNA Damage Response group at Cancer Research UK’s Clare Hall laboratory, which became part of the Francis Crick Institute in April 2015.
As VP Science Strategy at Artios, Simon will play an important role in assisting the business development team in the identification and evaluation of new pipeline opportunities from the global academic and industrial DDR network. Simon will also provide scientific leadership and support to the ongoing development of the two lead DDR programmes that Artios has in-licensed from Cancer Research Technology (CRT), the development and commercialisation arm of CRUK, one of which originated from Simon’s research group while based at Clare Hall laboratory.
Simon will join the newly formed leadership team at Artios Pharma, alongside his current and principal position as Senior Group Leader at the newly formed Francis Crick Institute, London. He will work together with Dr Niall Martin, Chief Executive Officer; Dr Nick Staples, Chief Business Officer; Andrew Muncey, Chief Financial Officer; Dr Peter Harris, Chief Medical Officer and Dr Harry Finch, Medicinal Chemist at Artios. This management team combines a strong track record of product discovery and development in the DDR field together with considerable transactional and operational experience in rapidly growing companies.
“Following our recent successful £25 million fundraise and subsequent launch of Artios as a new company focussed on developing new DDR targeted cancer therapies, we are delighted to welcome Dr Simon Boulton to our management team. Simon brings with him considerable DDR experience and a wealth of contacts and knowledge in the field, all of which will be invaluable as we continue to build a pipeline of first-in-class DDR programmes and establish Artios as a leading player in the DDR field.”
Dr Niall Martin, Chief Executive Officer
Simon Boulton, VP Science Strategy at Artios Pharma, said: “I have dedicated my career to the DNA repair field and believe there are many new and exciting opportunities to exploit our knowledge of DNA repair pathways to develop novel inhibitors to tackle cancers. I am delighted to have the opportunity to work with Artios, a company specialising in DNA Damage Response and passionate about developing novel treatments for cancer. I look forward to working with Niall and the rest of the team to build and deliver a pipeline of novel programmes that we hope will benefit the lives of cancer patients in the future.”
For more information about Artios Pharma Ltd., please contact:
Artios Pharma Ltd
Dr. Niall Martin, Chief Executive Officer
Dr. Nick Staples, Chief Business Officer
Tel: +44 (0)12 2380 4180
Consilium Strategic Communications
Mary-Jane Elliott, Lindsey Neville, Melissa Gardiner
Tel: +44 (0)20 3709 5700
Email: Artios@consilium-comms.com
About Artios Pharma Ltd.
Artios is a leading independent DNA Damage Response (DDR) company focussed on developing first-in-class treatments for cancer. Established in May 2016, the Company is led by an experienced scientific and leadership team with proven expertise in DDR drug discovery. Artios is building a pipeline of next-generation DDR programmes, including through a unique partnership with Cancer Research Technology (CRT), the development and commercialisation arm of Cancer Research UK (CRUK), and with leading DNA repair researchers worldwide. The Company’s investors include SV Life Sciences, Merck Ventures, Imperial Innovations, Arix Bioscience PLC, CRT Pioneer Fund (managed by Sixth Element Capital), and AbbVie Ventures. Artios is based at the Babraham Institute in Cambridge, UK.
About DNA Damage Response (DDR)
DNA Damage occurs in cells throughout the body every day. To counteract the harmful effects that DNA damage can cause, the human body possesses a network of DNA repair pathways, which act to correct the damage. This process is known as the DNA Damage Response (DDR). Defects in the body’s DDR can lead to an increased risk of cancer. Human cells have multiple DNA repair pathways, but in cancer cells, some of these pathways are lost, which result in genetic instability. Changes to DNA repair pathways can also drive the growth of tumours. By inhibiting DDR in cancer cells that have impaired repair pathways, scientists can selectively kill cancerous cells. DDR inhibitors, therefore, have the potential to act as: single agents that selectively kill tumour cells through synthetic lethality; adjunctive therapy to overcome resistance to current cytotoxics, and potentiating agents to radiotherapy and novel therapies including immune-oncology treatments.