NEW YORK, April 06, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- LEXEO Therapeutics, a clinical-stage gene therapy company, today announced the continued expansion of its management team with the appointments of two seasoned executives leading critical business functions, including Paul McCormac, Ph.D., as Senior Vice President, Technical Operations and Libbie Mansell, Ph.D., MBA, RAC, as Senior Vice President and Head of Regulatory Affairs.
“LEXEO Therapeutics was purpose-built as a fully integrated gene therapy company to advance a truly unique clinical-stage pipeline currently focused on monogenic rare cardiac and CNS diseases,” said R. Nolan Townsend, Chief Executive Officer of LEXEO Therapeutics. “One of our corporate priorities is building a world-class gene therapy organization, and we are thrilled to announce the appointments of two senior leaders, both with prior experience in the gene therapy field, to strengthen functions core to achieving LEXEO’s mission to deliver our treatments to patients as quickly as possible.”
Dr. McCormac is an industry expert with a proven track record in the field of gene therapy and biologics chemistry, manufacturing, and controls (CMC). Prior to joining LEXEO, he served as Medicinal Sciences Category Lead for Pfizer Rare Disease, where he among other responsibilities led gene therapy CMC and vector supply strategy for Pfizer’s rare disease business and research units. From 2008 to 2016, he was a product development leader in Pfizer’s manufacturing organization, leading late-stage development and commercialization of large molecule products. Prior to joining Pfizer, he held positions in process development at Avecia Biotechnology, a leading contract manufacturer of oligonucleotide therapeutics. Dr. McCormac received his B.S. in analytical science and his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Dublin City University and completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Queen's University Belfast.
“I am excited by the opportunity to join the LEXEO team and rejoin Nolan after prior time working together in Pfizer’s rare disease unit,” said Dr. McCormac. “LEXEO has a unique opportunity at hand to advance the field of gene therapy in meaningful ways, and it is rare to find a company at this stage with such an impressive clinical-stage pipeline.”
Dr. Mansell is an experienced regulatory affairs leader whose strategic and tactical expertise in clinical research and global regulatory affairs has helped companies of all sizes progress drug candidates from discovery through post-approval. Prior to LEXEO, she served as Senior Vice President, Regulatory Affairs at Asklepios Biopharmaceuticals (AskBio). Over the past 30 years in the biopharmaceutical industry, she has held executive positions focused on global product development, regulatory strategy and product approval. Over the course of her career, she has overseen nine product approvals for rare and/or life-threatening diseases, as well as led regulatory and development strategy for numerous gene and cell therapies. Prior to her experience at AskBio, Dr. Mansell has held regulatory affairs or medical affairs leadership positions at Curis, Sigma-Tau, Genzyme and Millenium Pharmaceuticals among other companies. Dr. Mansell received her B.A. in biology and chemistry from Willamette University. She earned an MBA in finance and international business from New York University, Stern School of Business. She holds a Ph.D. in pharmacokinetics and biopharmaceutics with a minor in applied statistics from Oregon State University.
"I am delighted to be joining LEXEO at this exciting time for the company as it continues to advance a pipeline of disease-modifying gene therapy programs,” said Dr. Mansell. “I look forward to applying my experience in drug development and regulatory affairs at LEXEO to help bring new therapies to patients in need."
In addition to these executive appointments, LEXEO has appointed other senior team members to key positions in the first quarter including Christopher Holterhoff as Vice President, Business and Corporate Development and Richie Khanna, Ph.D., as Executive Director and Head of Non-Clinical Development. Mr. Holterhoff and Dr. Khanna bring prior experiences in rare disease and gene therapy in their respective functions.
About LEXEO Therapeutics, Inc.
LEXEO Therapeutics is a New York City-based, fully integrated biotechnology company currently headquartered at the Alexandria Center® for Life Science that aims to apply the transformational science of gene therapy to address some of the world’s most devastating genetic and acquired diseases. LEXEO Therapeutics’ pipeline consists of adeno-associated virus (AAV)-mediated therapies primarily developed at Weill Cornell Medicine’s Department of Genetic Medicine. Beyond LEXEO Therapeutics’ lead programs – which are focused on both rare and non-rare monogenic (single gene mutation) diseases – the company’s preclinical pipeline spans monogenic diseases, as well as hereditary and acquired diseases across a spectrum of patient population sizes and a range of unmet medical needs. Importantly, LEXEO Therapeutics will focus on advancing clinical programs through to commercialization, with the goal of maintaining an ongoing research collaboration with Weill Cornell Medicine’s Department of Genetic Medicine to help advance the company’s pre-clinical pipeline. For more information, please visit www.lexeotx.com or LinkedIn.
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