Janux Therapeutics Appoints Byron Robinson, Ph.D., J.D., as Chief Strategy Officer
Janux Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:JANX) (Janux), a biopharmaceutical company developing a broad pipeline of novel immunotherapies by applying its proprietary technology to its Tumor Activated T Cell Engager (TRACTr) and Tumor Activated Immunomodulator (TRACIr) platforms, today announced the appointment of Byron Robinson, Ph.D., J.D., as Chief Strategy Officer. Dr. Robinson brings 30 years of industry expertise and experience from key strategy roles at large pharma companies, including Merck KGaA, Bayer, and Amgen.
"We are thrilled to welcome Byron to our executive leadership team, bringing his impressive track record of systematically evaluating market opportunities to drive successful clinical strategy," said David Campbell, Ph.D., President and CEO of Janux. "His insights and strategic experience will make him a critical addition to the team as we continue to leverage our novel TRACTr and TRACIr platforms to advance our broad pipeline of next-generation immunotherapies towards the clinic."
Prior to joining Janux, Dr. Robinson served as Senior Vice President of Clinical Development Strategy and Innovation at Merck KGaA. In this role, he was responsible for generating strategic insights for internal and external innovation for the generation of the Clinical Oncology Franchise Strategy for all Merck KGaA oncology assets. In addition, he also served as the Senior Vice President Global Program Leader for the avelumab program, where he advanced BAVENCIO® through late-stage development, including eleven registrational Phase 3 trials and more than 240 clinical trials. Prior to Merck KGaA, Dr. Robinson was Vice President, Senior Global Program Head, Oncology (Early & Late) at Bayer, developing several assets, including ALIQOPA® (copanlisib), in the hematology-oncology and solid tumor spaces. Prior to Bayer, he was Global Project Manager on seventeen different assets across multiple therapeutic areas for Amgen Inc. Byron earned his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of New England, Armidale, Australia and completed his J.D. from Santa Barbara College of Law.
"This is a particularly exciting time to be joining Janux, as the Company identifies areas to maximize the value of its product candidates," said Dr. Robinson. "With an outstanding leadership team and two compelling platform technologies that together support a broad range of clinical opportunities, Janux is well-positioned to prosecute in areas that represent significant unmet needs. I look forward to helping steer the Company's next phase of growth."
About Janux Therapeutics
Janux Therapeutics is an innovative biopharmaceutical company developing next-generation therapeutics based on applying its proprietary technology to its Tumor Activated T Cell Engager (TRACTr) and Tumor Activated Immunomodulator (TRACIr) platforms to better treat patients suffering from cancer. Janux's initial focus is on developing a novel class of T cell engagers (TCEs), and its lead product candidates are designed to target clinically validated drug targets. While TCE therapeutics have displayed potent anti-tumor activity in hematological cancers, developing TCEs to treat solid tumors have faced challenges due to the limitations of prior TCE technologies, namely (i) overactivation of the immune system leading to cytokine release syndrome, (ii) on-target, healthy tissue toxicities, and (iii) poor pharmacokinetics leading to short half-life. Janux is using its TRACTr platform technology to engineer product candidates designed to overcome these limitations. Janux is developing a broad pipeline with lead TRACTr programs targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), and trophoblast cell surface antigen 2 (TROP2), and its lead TRACIr program targeting PD-L1xCD28, with all of its programs currently in the IND-enabling or discovery stage. For more information, please visit www.januxrx.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains certain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to be materially different from historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include statements regarding, among other things, Janux's ability to bring new treatments to cancer patients in need and the progress and expected timing of Janux's drug development programs. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially include the risk that compounds that appear promising in early research do not demonstrate safety and/or efficacy in later preclinical studies or clinical trials, the risk that Janux may not obtain approval to market its product candidates, uncertainties associated with performing clinical trials, regulatory filings and applications, risks associated with reliance on third parties to successfully conduct clinical trials, the risks associated with reliance on outside financing to meet capital requirements, and other risks associated with the process of discovering, developing and commercializing drugs that are safe and effective for use as human therapeutics, and in the endeavor of building a business around such drugs. You are urged to consider statements that include the words "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "believes," "estimates," "projects," "promise," "potential," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "intends," "continues," "designed," "goal," or the negative of those words or other comparable words to be uncertain and forward-looking. For a further list and description of the risks and uncertainties Janux faces, please refer to Janux's periodic and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available at www.sec.gov. Such forward-looking statements are current only as of the date they are made, and Janux assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
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