Kallyope, Pioneers in Drug Discovery via the Gut-Brain Axis, Strengthens Senior Leadership Team with Key Appointments

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kallyope, Inc., a leading biotechnology company focused on identifying and developing therapeutics involving the gut-brain axis, today announced the appointments of George Shiebler as General Counsel and Anita Kawatra as Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs, to help steer the company as it advances a pioneering drug discovery platform, clinical trials, and pipeline of multiple programs mediated by gut-brain axis signaling across a broad range of therapeutic areas.

“With novel compounds in two lead programs now in clinical development, this is an inflection point for Kallyope. As we embark upon our next phase of growth to bring forth powerful new therapeutics driven by our unique drug discovery platform, we are continuing to build a world-class team to help take our work from the lab to the real world,” said Jay Galeota, president and CEO, Kallyope. “George and Anita are recognized industry leaders with extraordinary track records. George brings to Kallyope comprehensive knowledge of pharmaceutical industry regulations and unmatched expertise in negotiating a wide variety of sophisticated corporate transactions. Anita has an extensive background in the life sciences, global public health, and public policy, with a strong history of success advising management and boards of startup and growing biotech companies. We look forward to benefiting from their experience and perspectives as we move forward.”

George Shiebler has more than 30 years of experience as an attorney in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries. Most recently, he was Senior Vice President and General Counsel of nference, an AI-driven health technology company. Previously, he was a founding executive and General Counsel at Inheris Biopharma, and General Counsel and Chief of Staff for G&W Laboratories. Mr. Shiebler spent 23 years at Merck & Co., leading the worldwide transaction and licensing practice and overseeing multibillion-dollar public and private mergers and acquisitions, multinational joint ventures, and venture investments in startups. He holds a JD from the University of Georgia School of Law, where he was a member of the Law Review, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia.

Anita Kawatra has held numerous senior management positions in the life sciences over the past 20 years, following a decade in government and policy. Most recently, she was Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at nference. Previously, she was a founding executive of Inheris Biopharma and held global roles at Elan Pharmaceuticals, Prothena Biosciences, Merck & Co., and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative. Prior to her work in biopharmaceuticals, she served in the administrations of New York City Mayor David Dinkins and New York Governor Mario Cuomo. Ms. Kawatra is a board member of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, the largest public health system in the United States. In 2020, she was named among the 100 most influential Asian Americans in New York politics and policy. She holds a master’s degree from Columbia University and a bachelor’s degree from Yale University.

About Kallyope

Kallyope, headquartered at the Alexandria Center® for Life Science in New York City, is a biotechnology company dedicated to unlocking the therapeutic potential of the gut-brain axis. The company’s cross-disciplinary team integrates advanced technologies in sequencing, bioinformatics, neural imaging, cellular and molecular biology, and human genetics to provide an understanding of gut-brain biology that leads to transformational therapeutics to improve human health. The company’s founders are Charles Zuker, Ph.D., Lasker Award winner Tom Maniatis, Ph.D., and Nobel laureate Richard Axel, M.D. For more information visit www.kallyope.com.