NATICK, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AffyImmune Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to developing novel, first-in-class, affinity-tuned CAR T cell therapies, announced today the appointment of Matt Britz to Chief Executive Officer and Pete Gelinas as Senior Vice President of Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls.
“Matt has been an instrumental part of AffyImmune’s growth in the past two years,” said Simone Song, Chairperson of the Board of Directors, AffyImmune, and Founder and Senior Partner at ORI Capital. “AffyImmune is a company incubated by ORI Capital. Matt has executed a focused business strategy supported by insights generated from our big data platform ORIzon, which has led to promising early clinical results for AffyImmune’s lead program AIC100 in advanced thyroid cancer. Matt is well-suited to lead AffyImmune as CEO as the Company accelerates clinical development of AIC100 in thyroid cancer, and in other indications with high unmet medical need. I am also thrilled to welcome Pete to our leadership team at a critical time as we scale up CMC efforts to support our ongoing trial and potential indication expansion. Pete’s extensive BLA experience will be invaluable as AffyImmune moves to the next stage of growth.”
“I’m honored to lead AffyImmune’s efforts in advancing affinity-tuned CAR T therapies, building upon the solid foundation we’ve established in the last few years,” said Britz. “Together, we're well-positioned to make significant advancements in addressing the challenges of solid cancers to improve patient outcomes."
Matt Britz joined AffyImmune in June 2021 as Senior Vice President (SVP), Business Development and was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in January 2022. He brings 28 years of demonstrated experience in life sciences, and was previously SVP and Head of Business Development at Minerva Biotechnologies, where he led teams across corporate development, manufacturing, clinical operations and regulatory affairs. Prior to Minerva Biotechnologies, Matt held scientific, consulting, and business development positions at Merck, Pfizer, Equinox Group, Health Advances, and Envoy Therapeutics, and played a crucial role in the acquisition of Envoy Therapeutics by Takeda. Matt has expertise leading teams in the initial stages of drug discovery all the way through to development and commercialization. Matt has an MBA from Washington University St. Louis, and a BS in Chemical Engineering and Biology from MIT.
Pete Gelinas brings over 15 years of extensive experience in Manufacturing and CMC Product Development to AffyImmune. Previously, he served as the Head of Manufacturing and Technical Operations at ElevateBio, where he led technology transfer, CMC strategy, and oversight of routine clinical manufacturing. During his tenure at bluebird bio, he led both the MSAT and CMC teams for Skysona, a treatment for Cerebral Adrenoleukodystrophy (CALD). He has executed numerous late-phase global technology transfer deals and played a pivotal role in driving the drug product process validation efforts critical to the successful Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for Zynteglo. Peter has also held various positions at the Connell O’Reilly Cell Manipulation Core Facility (CMCF) at Dana Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI), where he contributed to the development and manufacturing of several gene and cell-based therapies.
“I am thrilled to join AffyImmune at this next stage of growth, with the opportunity to contribute my expertise in manufacturing to advance this pipeline for patients with solid cancers,” said Gelinas. “I look forward to making a difference in the lives of patients and their families, and to deliver our life-changing therapies in areas with high unmet medical need.”
About AffyImmune Therapeutics
AffyImmune is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to developing novel, first-in-class, affinity-tuned CAR T cell therapies to transform the lives of patients with cancer. The Company’s proprietary technology utilizing ICAM1/LFA-1 interaction can potentially address all critical CAR T challenges such as toxicity, antigen loss, T-cell trafficking and exhaustion, while also allowing in vivo tracking of the CAR T cells. Its lead candidate, AIC100, is a ICAM1-directed CAR T therapy being developed for patients with advanced thyroid cancer. AffyImmune is developing a focused pipeline of therapeutics targeting ICAM-1 in oncologic indications with high unmet medical need. AffyImmune is based in Natick, MA. For more information, visit www.affyimmune.com.
