WALTHAM, Mass,--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Adagio Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of antibody-based solutions for infectious diseases with pandemic potential, today announced the expansion of the company’s board of directors with key appointments, including:
- Tom Heyman, former president of the Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation (JJDC)
- Anand Shah, M.D., former deputy commissioner for medical and scientific affairs at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- Michael Wyzga, president of MSW Consulting, Inc.
“I am thrilled to welcome Tom, Anand and Mike to our board of directors, bringing unmatched expertise from their respective industry roles, and who join at a critical time as we prepare for potential commercialization of ADG20 to combat COVID-19, including rapidly emerging variants,” said Rene Russo, Adagio co-founder and chair of the board of directors. “Spanning his 37-year career with Johnson & Johnson, Tom held a diverse range of leadership roles across R&D, business development, corporate strategy and equity investments. As the deputy commissioner at the FDA until January 2021, Anand led consensus medical and scientific policy development and, during the COVID-19 pandemic, worked across the federal government and with the private sector to advance the development of vaccines and treatments.”
Jane Henderson, Adagio’s chief financial officer added, “Financial strength and discipline are of the utmost importance to our success as we advance several clinical trials with ADG20. We are thrilled to welcome Mike to our board, who brings years of experience leading exceptional financial operations at both public and private companies within the pharmaceutical industry. We look forward to partnering with him, as well as Tom and Anand, to benefit from their invaluable insights into clinical development, financial best practices, regulatory strategy, policy engagement and commercial execution, so that we may address this ongoing global pandemic today.”
Tom Heyman has a long-standing track record in the biopharmaceutical industry, with particular experience in business development and venture capital. He most recently served as president of JJDC, the venture capital group within Johnson & Johnson, where he managed approximately $1.5 billion of capital and oversaw investments in over 120 companies. Prior to his role at JJDC, Mr. Heyman spent 23 years leading business development for Johnson & Johnson’s pharmaceutical group, Janssen, where he was involved in hundreds of licensing and M&A transactions. Under his leadership, major licensing transactions were executed for products like Levaquin, Aciphex, Incivo, Olysio, Velcade, Invokana, Imbruvica, Xarelto and Darzalex, many of which have achieved sales of over $1 billion annually. Also, during his tenure, he led Janssen Belgium through a significant reorganization and implemented a new strategic plan for the site with a major emphasis on external innovation and value creation. Mr. Heyman graduated as Master of Law from the K.U. Leuven in Belgium. He continued with post-graduate studies in International Law in Geneva, Switzerland, and post-graduate studies in business management at the University of Antwerp in Belgium.
Anand Shah, M.D., is a U.S. health policy leader who recently served as the deputy commissioner for medical and scientific affairs at the FDA. Dr. Shah led medical and scientific policy development for high priority programs including Advanced Manufacturing, the Coronavirus Treatment Acceleration Program, COVID-19 vaccine development, and decentralized clinical trials. Under his leadership, FDA initiated the Pandemic Recovery and Preparedness Plan (PREPP) to strengthen the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and resiliency for future public health emergencies. Dr. Shah represented FDA with top-level policy makers of the White House and Cabinet, Congress, and state and local governments. He previously served in senior leadership at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, both as senior medical advisor and chief medical officer of the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation. Dr. Shah was chief resident during his radiation oncology residency at Columbia University. He concurrently earned his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.P.H. in health care management and policy from the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Shah has an economics degree from Duke University.
Michael Wyzga is the president of MSW Consulting, Inc., a private company focused on strategic biotechnology consulting, a position he has held since November 2013. Prior to that, he served as president, chief executive officer and a member of the board of directors of Radius Health, Inc. From 1993 to 2011, Mr. Wyzga served in various senior management positions at Genzyme Corporation, including as executive vice president, finance and as chief financial officer. During his time with Genzyme, Mr. Wyzga played key roles in the successful development and commercialization of a number of important therapies, including Cerezyme for Gauche disease, Fabrazyme for Fabry’s disease, Renagel for use in the treatment of dialysis patients and Campath for chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Mr. Wyzga has served on a number of public company boards, including at Mereo BioPharma Group plc, OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, Inc., X4 Pharmaceuticals, GenSight Biologics, LogicBio Therapeutics, Akebia Therapeutics, Inc., Idenix Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Prosensa Holding B.V. Mr. Wyzga received an MBA from Providence College and a B.S. from Suffolk University.
About Adagio Therapeutics
Adagio is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of antibody-based solutions for infectious diseases with pandemic potential. The company’s portfolio of antibodies has been optimized using Adimab’s industry-leading antibody engineering capabilities and is designed to provide patients and clinicians with a powerful combination of potency, breadth, durable protection (via half-life extension), manufacturability and affordability. Adagio’s portfolio of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies includes multiple, non-competing broadly neutralizing antibodies with distinct binding epitopes, led by ADG20. Adagio has secured manufacturing capacity for the production of ADG20 with third-party contract manufacturers through the completion of clinical trials and, if approved by regulatory authorities, through initial commercial launch. For more information, please visit www.adagiotx.com.
