EMERYVILLE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--4D Molecular Therapeutics (4DMT), a world-leader in Therapeutic Vector Evolution for adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapy vector discovery and product development, announced the appointments of Fred Kamal, PhD, as chief technical officer, and August Moretti as chief financial officer. The company also announced the promotions of Peter Francis to chief medical officer and Theresa Janke to chief operating officer.
“4D continues to execute towards its goal of building a platform and pipeline of next-generation AAV gene therapy products for patients with severe genetic diseases, and I am thrilled to further strengthen our executive team with the appointments of Fred and Augie and the promotions of Peter and Theresa,” said David Kirn, chairman and chief executive officer of 4DMT. “These additions build on our strong foundation as a leader in the gene therapy field. Fred is a seasoned drug developer and brings technical expertise in AAV gene therapy manufacturing and quality while Augie brings a wealth of experience in finance, legal and operations. Peter and Theresa have experience as leaders in gene therapy clinical research and business operations, and we are excited to continue leveraging their skills in these expanded roles.”
Fred Kamal, PhD has over 25 years of experience in the biotechnology industry, having focused much of his career on manufacturing and quality. Prior to joining 4DMT, Fred served as senior vice president of quality and regulatory CMC at Avexis, where he ultimately oversaw the BLA submission of AVXS-101, a groundbreaking one-time therapy designed to address the genetic cause of SMA Type 1. Prior to Avexis, Dr. Kamal was vice president of global quality at Juno Therapeutics and before that, vice president of global quality at InterMune. Earlier in his career, he served in various roles of increasing responsibility at MedImmune, Bayer Health Care and Amgen. Dr. Kamal received his MS and PhD from American University.
With over 35 years of experience working with life sciences companies, August Moretti brings broad-based financial, operational and legal experience to 4DMT. Mr. Moretti joins after previously serving as senior vice president and chief financial officer at Assertio Therapeutics (formerly Depomed). Prior to Assertio, he was chief financial officer, senior vice president and general counsel at Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Prior to that, he served as chief financial officer and general counsel of Alavita, Inc. (formerly Surromed Inc.). Mr. Moretti has extensive finance experience and has raised more than $1.5 billion of capital from equity, convertible and secured debt and royalty monetization. At Alexza and Assertio he was responsible for a combined 50 consecutive quarters of SEC reporting. Mr. Moretti holds a BA degree in Economics from Princeton University and a JD from Harvard Law School.
Peter Francis, MD, PhD, is an ophthalmologist clinician-scientist with expertise in ophthalmic genetics and retinal disease. He has served as principal investigator on several important gene and stem-cell clinical trials. Dr. Francis joined 4DMT in 2015 as vice president, clinical and translational R&D and head of ophthalmology therapeutic area. Prior to 4DMT, he was chief medical officer at RetroSense Therapeutics, a gene therapy company developing optogenetic therapy for eye disease, which was acquired by Allergan. Peter holds a PhD in ophthalmic genetics from University College, London. Peter is fellowship trained in retina, genetics and neuro-ophthalmology.
Theresa Janke has over 18 years of clinical research and operations, alliance and program management, and business operations experience in the biopharmaceutical industry. Her work has included oversight of multiple strategic collaborations and planning and management of international clinical trials at companies developing complex viral vector-based oncolytic virus immunotherapies, viral vector-based gene therapies, and medical devices. She was a founding member of the management team at 4DMT and is a board member of IGNITE Immunotherapy. Theresa previously served as senior vice president, Business Operations & Alliance Management at 4DMT. Prior to 4DMT she served as director of clinical operations at Jennerex Biotherapeutics. Earlier in her career, Ms. Janke held roles of increasing responsibility at different divisions of Abbott, Allergan and Celgene. Theresa holds a BS degree in Biology & Neuropsychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara.
About 4D Molecular Therapeutics (4DMT)
4DMT is focused on the discovery and development of targeted, customized and proprietary next-generation AAV gene therapy products for use in patients with severe genetic diseases with high unmet medical need. Our robust discovery platform, termed Therapeutic Vector Evolution, empowers us to create customized gene delivery vehicles to deliver genes specifically to any tissue or organ in the body, by optimal clinical routes of administration, at lower doses and with resistance to pre-existing antibodies. These proprietary and targeted products allow us to treat both rare genetic diseases and complex large market diseases. 4DMT is creating a diverse and deep product pipeline through its own internal 4D products, as well as partnered programs.
About 4DMT’s Therapeutic Vector Evolution
4DMT is advancing the field of targeted and optimized AAV vector technology by deploying principles of evolution and natural selection to create vectors that efficiently and selectively target the desired cells within the diseased human organ via clinically optimal routes of administration, at manageable doses and with resistance to pre-existing antibodies in the population. Our Therapeutic Vector Evolution platform deploys over 100 million unique AAV variants from over 35 unique and proprietary 4DMT AAV libraries with extensive diversity. After defining the Target Product Profile, and the associated Target Vector Profile, 4DMT then applies proprietary methods to identify lead vectors from within our AAV libraries. The result is a customized, novel, and proprietary pharmaceutical-grade product uniquely designed for targeted therapeutic gene delivery and efficacy in humans.
