SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Graphite Bio, a next-generation gene editing company focused on therapies that harness targeted gene integration to treat or cure serious diseases, today announced the appointment of Jerry Cacia as chief technical officer and a member of the company’s executive leadership team.
In this role, Mr. Cacia will lead the development of the overall manufacturing strategy and technical operations in support of Graphite Bio’s gene editing programs as they advance to the clinic. He will lead the development of a robust manufacturing strategy and its implementation to ensure the advancement of Graphite Bio’s clinical programs and assure a clear and scalable path to patients.
"During his tenure at Roche and Genentech, Jerry’s leadership in CMC areas, including technical development and manufacturing, led to the approval of dozens of novel biologic and synthetic molecule therapies for patients with serious unmet needs. This experience will be invaluable to Graphite Bio as we transition to being a clinical stage company,” said Josh Lehrer, M.Phil., M.D., chief executive officer at Graphite Bio. “Further, Jerry will partner with our chief operating officer, Katherine Stultz, to expand our operational capabilities and lay the groundwork now to advance our pipeline of next generation gene editing treatments into late-stage clinical trials and towards commercialization. We are eager to leverage Jerry's extensive R&D as well as manufacturing expertise, and I am delighted to welcome him to our leadership team."
Mr. Cacia has proven experience in the development of manufacturing processes and quality control systems across multiple therapeutic modalities. During his 32-year career at Genentech and Roche, he held various senior leadership positions in technical development, manufacturing, and quality. In his most recent position, Jerry served as head of global technical development at Roche. In this role, he supported a pipeline that included over 80 new molecular entities and more than 100 development projects in various stages, including a number of cell, gene, and individualized neoantigen therapy programs.
"Graphite Bio is a pioneering gene editing company with a highly differentiated technology platform that represents a next generation approach for high efficiency, targeted gene integration," said Mr. Cacia. "I am thrilled to join the company as it advances its lead product candidate, a potentially curative therapy for sickle cell disease, into the clinic and moves closer to helping patients with significant unmet medical need.”
About Graphite Bio, Inc.
Graphite Bio is a next-generation gene editing company focused on the development of potentially curative therapies for patients suffering from serious diseases. The company’s targeted gene integration platform harnesses the natural cellular process of homology directed repair (HDR) to efficiently repair genetic defects at their source, deliver genetic cargo with precision and engineer new cellular effector functions. Graphite Bio is leveraging its differentiated platform, initially focused on ex vivo engineering of hematopoietic stem cells, to advance a portfolio of transformative treatments with potential for saving and dramatically improving patients’ lives. The company was co-founded by academic pioneers in the fields of gene editing and gene therapy, including Maria Grazia Roncarolo, MD, and Matthew Porteus, MD, PhD, and is backed by Versant Ventures and Samsara BioCapital. For more information, please visit www.graphitebio.com.
