Alentis names Markus Meyer COO and promotes Alberto Toso to SVP
Head Oncology and Geoffrey Teixeira to SVP Head Fibrosis
Basel, Switzerland – 17 February 2023 Alentis Therapeutics (“Alentis”), the biotechnology company developing breakthrough treatments for organ fibrosis and CLDN1+ tumors, today announced the appointment of Markus Meyer to Chief Operations Officer (COO), Geoffrey Teixeira to SVP Head Fibrosis, Alberto Toso to SVP Head Oncology, effective 15 February.
In his new role, Markus will be responsible for leading the development of Alentis’ portfolio of monoclonal antibodies that are highly selective in targeting exposed and non-junctional Claudin-1 (CLDN1). Alentis’ pipeline includes ALE.F02, which is currently in Phase 1 clinical studies for the treatment of advanced kidney, liver and lung fibrosis; and ALE.C04, currently at IND submission stage to treat CLDN1+ solid tumors.
Dr. Roberto Iacone, CEO at Alentis Therapeutics, said: “Markus, who has been with Alentis since the beginning, together with Alberto and Geoffrey have nearly 40 years of combined drug development experience, and are fundamental to shaping and implementing Alentis’ expanded strategy. He added, “They will help consolidate and pursue new indications and exploit Claudin-1 as a fundamental pathway for the treatment of organ cancer and fibrosis. Their expertise and experience will be invaluable as we progress the clinical development of ALE.F02 and prepare ALE.C04 for clinical trials later this year.”
Alentis published data late last year in the peer-reviewed journals Science Translational Medicine and The Journal of Hepatology that provided further evidence to support the role of CLDN1 as a previously unexploited target for kidney, liver, and lung fibrosis and CLDN1+ tumors.
Markus has more than 20 years of drug development experience in Pharma and Biotech R&D. A molecular biologist by training and drug developer with profound experience from discovery to Phase III with small molecules, antibodies and mRNAs. He holds a PhD in Molecular Biology from the University of Munich and Max-Planck Institute for Biochemistry (Martinsried) and had a post-doctoral fellowship at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Heidelberg, Germany.
Geoffrey Teixeira joined Alentis as Head Fibrosis in September 2021, bringing a decade of industrial drug development experience in inflammatory and fibrotic diseases. Geoffrey holds a PhD in Physiology from the University of Lyon, France.
Alberto Toso joined Alentis as Head Oncology in October 2021, bringing more than six years of industrial drug development experience in Immune Oncology (IO) and Targeted therapy. Alberto holds a PhD in Biochemistry from ETH in Zurich, Switzerland.
Full biographies are available at www.alentis.ch
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About Alentis Therapeutics
Alentis Therapeutics, the Claudin-1 company, is a clinical-stage biotechnology company that focuses on developing breakthrough treatments for CLDN1+ tumors and organ fibrosis.
Alentis is pioneering a novel approach to modify and reverse the course of disease progression targeting Claudin-1 (CLDN1), a previously unexploited target that plays a key role in the pathology of tumors with immune evasive properties and fibrotic disease across multiple organs. Alentis is the only company developing potential treatments for solid cancers and fibrosis targeting Claudin-1.
Alentis’ portfolio of anti-CLDN1 monoclonal antibodies includes a novel class of anti-cancer therapies designed to reprogram the tumor microenvironment (TME). The interplay between cancer cells and their surrounding microenvironment is highly promising for drug development as many cancers use the TME to build barriers that shield against immune system attack. Alentis’ lead oncology asset, ALE.C04, is the first potential treatment to target CLDN1 to open up the mechanical barrier that characterizes immune-excluded CLDN1+ tumors, thus making the tumors vulnerable to treatment.
In addition, Alentis’ pipeline includes a first-in-class therapy designed to modify and reverse the course of advanced organ fibrosis. ALE.F02, which is currently in Phase 1 clinical trials, is designed to target pathological overexpression of CLDN1 outside of the tight junction to resolve and reverse organ fibrosis, and is being investigated for the treatment of fibrotic disease in the kidney, lung and liver.
The company was founded in 2019 based on ground-breaking research in the laboratory of Prof. Thomas Baumert MD at the University of Strasbourg and the French National Institute of Health (Inserm). Alentis is headquartered in Basel’s pharma-biotech hub in Switzerland with a subsidiary for R&D in Strasbourg, France.
For more information, visit https://alentis.ch
For more information please contact:
Alentis Therapeutics
Nathalie Graf-Tschupp
info@alentis.ch
O public relations GmbH
O’Patrick Wilson / Jennifer Sgueglia
o@os-pr.com / js@os-pr.com
Tel: +41 (0) 78 888 4332 / +41 (0) 79 542 2517