CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AavantiBio (“the Company”), a gene therapy company focused on transforming the lives of patients with rare genetic diseases, today announced the formation of its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) and its members. The newly formed SAB will collaborate closely with AavantiBio’s senior leadership team and support the advancement of the Company’s diversified pipeline of gene therapy programs targeting rare genetic diseases with significant unmet medical need.
“We are proud to have such an accomplished and diverse group of scientific thought leaders and industry experts joining our SAB who share our commitment to expanding the field of genetic medicine for the benefit of the rare disease community,” said Bo Cumbo, President and Chief Executive Officer of AavantiBio. “These thought leaders bring a combination of deep expertise in rare diseases and extensive experience in drug development. We look forward to benefitting from their scientific, development and strategic insights as we seek to advance our multi-program pipeline of novel gene therapy candidates, beginning with our lead program in Friedreich’s Ataxia.” The Board will be chaired by Philip Johnson, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Interius BioTherapeutics, a preclinical stage gene therapy company developing novel methods for in vivo cell-specific gene delivery.
In addition to the Company’s scientific founders, pioneering gene therapy researchers Barry Byrne, M.D., Ph.D., and Manuela Corti, PT, Ph.D., the inaugural members of AavantiBio’s Scientific Advisory Board include:
Philip Johnson, M.D., is the President and CEO of Interius BioTherapeutics and an expert in viral vector technology and human gene transfer. Previously, he was the founding Chief Scientific Officer, President, and Interim CEO of Limelight Bio. For nearly three decades, Dr. Johnson led large research enterprises at two of the world’s premier academic pediatric hospitals – The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Nationwide Children’s Hospital. He has received multiple national honors including election to the American Pediatric Society and being named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a Fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology. Dr. Johnson received undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of North Carolina and then completed pediatrics residency and infectious diseases fellowship training at Vanderbilt University and the National Institutes of Health.
Bruce D. Gelb, M.D., is the Director and Gogel Family Professor of the Mindich Child Health and Development Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. He is Professor of Pediatrics and of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and co-directs the Cardiovascular Genetics Program at Mount Sinai. Dr. Gelb developed and now oversees an extensive program in genomics/gene discovery for congenital heart disease. He is a recipient of the E. Mead Johnson Award from the Society for Pediatric Research and the Norman J. Siegel New Member Outstanding Science Award from the American Pediatric Society. Dr. Gelb was elected to the American Society of Clinical Investigation and the National Academy of Medicine. He completed a pediatric residency and pediatric cardiology fellowship at Babies Hospital of Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center and Texas Children’s Hospital at the Baylor College of Medicine.
Kevin M. Flanigan, M.D., is Director of the Center for Gene Therapy in the Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's and a leading expert in neuromuscular disorders. He also leads the physician team for Nationwide Children's world-class Neuromuscular Disorders program and is Professor of Pediatrics and Neurology at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. Dr. Flanigan earned his medical degree from Rush Medical College and completed his internship at the University of Michigan Health System before completing his Neurology residency and fellowship in Neuromuscular Disorders at the Johns Hopkins Hospital, and an additional post-doctoral laboratory fellowship in Human Molecular Biology and Genetics at the University of Utah.
Page Bouchard, D.V.M., is a biopharma industry veteran with nearly three decades of experience developing new therapeutics, including hundreds of Investigational New Drug programs and dozens of New Drug Application/Biologics License Application filings. Most recently, Dr. Bouchard served as Chief Scientific Officer of Novartis Gene Therapies. From 2009-2019, he served as Vice President and Global Head of Preclinical Safety at Novartis AG. Prior to Novartis, Dr. Bouchard served as Senior Vice President of Preclinical R&D at Archemix Corp. Before that, he served as Vice President of Drug Safety Evaluation at Millennium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Dr. Bouchard received a bachelor's degree from Wesleyan University and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Tufts University Veterinary School. He trained in veterinary pathology at Cornell Veterinary School, is Board certified in veterinary pathology by the American College of Veterinary Pathologists and has served on the executive committee of the Society of Toxicologic Pathologists.
Gilmore O’Neill, M.B., M.M.Sc., is the former Chief Medical Officer and Executive Vice President of Research and Development at Sarepta Therapeutics. Dr. O’Neill joined Sarepta from Biogen, where he held leadership roles of increasing responsibility over a 15-year period in research and development. During his tenure, Dr. O’Neill oversaw development programs for Alzheimer’s disease, movement disorders, acute neurology, multiple sclerosis, pain, neuromuscular disease, gene and cell therapy, and rare diseases. He is the recipient of numerous awards in science and medicine, including the Lefler Fellowship in the Department of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. O’Neill received a Bachelor of Medicine degree from University College Dublin and a Master of Medical Sciences degree from Harvard University.
About AavantiBio, Inc.
AavantiBio is a gene therapy company backed by a premier syndicate of life sciences investors including Perceptive Advisors, Bain Capital Life Sciences, and RA Capital Management, who led the company’s $107 million Series A financing. Headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, AavantiBio’s platform is focused on advancing innovative gene therapies in areas of high unmet medical need, including a lead program in Friedreich’s Ataxia, a rare inherited genetic disease that causes cardiac and central nervous system dysfunction. The company benefits from strategic partnerships with the University of Florida’s Powell Gene Therapy Center and the MDA Care Center at UF Health where AavantiBio’s co-founders and renowned gene therapy researchers Barry Byrne, M.D., Ph.D. and Manuela Corti, P.T., Ph.D. maintain their research and clinical practices. Learn more at www.aavantibio.com.
