Avid Bioservices Names Nicholas Green as President and Chief Executive Officer

On June 23, 2020 Avid Bioservices, Inc. (NASDAQ:CDMO) (NASDAQ:CDMOP), a dedicated biologics contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) working to improve patient lives by providing high quality development and manufacturing services to biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, reported that Nicholas Green has been appointed president and chief executive officer, as well as a member of the company’s board of directors, effective July 30, 2020 (Press release, Avid Bioservices, JUN 23, 2020, View Source [SID1234561387]). He will succeed Rick Hancock who has served as interim president and CEO since May 2019. Mr. Hancock will continue to serve on Avid’s board of directors.

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Mr. Green has more than 30 years of experience in the global pharmaceutical and healthcare services industry with significant expertise in the contract manufacturing of novel pharmaceutical products. His global pharmaceutical experience spans four continents, having run 31 facilities in nine countries spanning North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. Throughout his career, Mr. Green has held a number of senior management roles for several contract manufacturing organizations and life science companies, where he is credited with successfully building and expanding those businesses and delivering significant value for customers, patients, employees, and other stakeholders.

Joseph Carleone, Ph.D., chairman of the Avid board of directors, said, "On behalf of the Avid board, I’d like to welcome Nick as our new president and CEO. His appointment is the result of a deliberate and comprehensive search for an industry executive capable of leading Avid to achieve its full potential. Nick’s lengthy and impressive career in the pharmaceutical contract development and manufacturing sector, which has included senior leadership roles at several successful companies, positions him perfectly to oversee Avid’s ongoing efforts aimed at customer base expansion and revenue growth. The board and I look forward to the positive impact that Nick will make on the company’s business over both the near and long-term."

"I am excited to join the Avid team and contribute my industry experience to helping the company continue its impressive growth trajectory," said Mr. Green. "Today, there is significant and growing demand for companies at the leading edge of contract development and manufacturing services for biologics. With its high-quality offerings in the areas of process development, analytical services, and CGMP manufacturing, combined with its more than 25 years of experience in manufacturing complex biologics, Avid is among the best positioned companies to seize this opportunity."

"I thoroughly enjoyed my role as the interim president and CEO of Avid and am proud of what the company has achieved during that time in diversifying our client base and increasing revenues," said Rick Hancock. "I believe that Avid is well positioned to execute successfully on its growth strategy moving forward and the addition of a leader such as Nick will only serve to strengthen the company’s prospects. The appointment of someone of Nick’s caliber, combined with the strength and talents of the entire Avid team, make it easy for me to step aside and transition back into the sole role of board member at this time. I would like to express deep gratitude to all Avid team members for their commitment and hard work during my tenure."

Mr. Green most recently served as president and CEO of Therapure Biopharma, a Canada-based biopharmaceutical company which includes Therapure Biomanufacturing. In this role, he oversaw the growth of the company’s CDMO business, while also leading the creation of Therapure’s proprietary plasma protein business, named Evolve. Prior to Therapure, he held a number of senior management roles, most notably managing director of Nipa Laboratories Ltd., head of the life science division of Clariant International Ltd. in the USA, president and CEO of Rhodia Pharma Solutions Ltd. and president of Codexis, Inc.’s pharma division. Mr. Green holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Queen Mary College in London and an MBA from the University of Huddersfield.

BerGenBio to Present at the Upcoming Virtual European Biotech Investor Day 2020

On June 23, 2020 BerGenBio, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel, selective AXL kinase inhibitors for multiple cancer indications reported that Richard Godfrey, CEO plans to present an overview of the Company at the upcoming Virtual European Biotech Investor Day 2020 hosted by Solebury Trout, Goodwin, Deutsche Bank and Nasdaq (Press release, BerGenBio, JUN 23, 2020, View Source [SID1234561386]). During the 30 minute presentation, participants will be able to submit questions electronically with answers provided at the discretion of the Company on an individual basis afterwards.

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Date and time: Thursday June 25, at 1:00 p.m. EDT (7:00 p.m. CET).

View and attend the event online: www.webcaster4.com/Webcast/Page/2408/35370

The presentation will also be made available on the Company’s website after the event has ended on 25 June at www.bergenbio.com/investors/presentations/

Abbott Hosts Conference Call for Second-Quarter Earnings

On June 23, 2020 Abbott (NYSE: ABT) reported that it will announce its second-quarter 2020 financial results on Thursday, July 16, 2020, before the market opens (Press release, Abbott, JUN 23, 2020, View Source [SID1234561385]).

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The announcement will be followed by a live webcast of the earnings conference call at 8:30 a.m. Central time (9:30 a.m. Eastern), and will be accessible through Abbott’s Investor Relations website at www.abbottinvestor.com. An archived edition of the call will be available later that day.

Achilles Therapeutics doses first patient in Phase I/II Study in advanced non-small cell lung cancer

On June 23, 2020 Achilles Therapeutics ("Achilles"), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing personalised cancer immunotherapies, reported that it has dosed the first patient in a Phase I/II CHIRON study of a clonal neoantigen T cell (cNeT) therapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) (Press release, Achilles Therapeutics, JUN 23, 2020, View Source [SID1234561374]). In May 2020, Achilles dosed the first patient with cNeT in its Phase I/II THETIS study in recurrent or metastatic malignant melanoma.

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Achilles’ precision tumour-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy uses cutting edge genomics to selectively target patient specific clonal neoantigens – targets which are believed to be present on all tumour cells – this approach has the potential to transform the treatment of cancer.

The CHIRON study is an open-label, multi-centre Phase I/II trial evaluating the safety, tolerability and clinical activity of cNeT therapy as a single dose in adult patients with advanced metastatic NSCLC. The trial is expected to recruit approximately 40 patients and report interim data in the first half of 2021. Recruitment is ongoing across sites in the UK, with additional sites to open in the US and Europe. Link to Study.

"The cNeT dosing of the first patient with NSCLC marks another important milestone for Achilles. Our opportunity to serve patients is tremendous as NSCLC remains one of the most prevalent and poorly served of the solid tumours," said Dr Iraj Ali, CEO of Achilles Therapeutics. "As with our melanoma study, the CHIRON study is an entirely personalised cell therapy designed to be exquisitely specific and effective and has the potential to help us fundamentally change how certain cancers are treated."

"We have been working closely with the Achilles team to design and set up this study across the UK, and are delighted to be dosing the first NSCLC patient with this innovative experimental cell therapy here at University College London Hospital (UCLH), the lead clinical site," said Dr Martin Forster, Associate Professor in Medical Oncology and Study Chief Investigator.

Achilles is developing personalised T cell therapies for solid tumours targeting clonal neoantigens: protein markers unique to each patient that are present on the surface of all cancer cells. Using its PELEUS bioinformatics platform, Achilles can identify clonal neoantigens from each patient’s unique tumour profile which are present on every cancer cell. Achilles uses its proprietary process to manufacture T cells (cNeT) which exquisitely target a specific set of clonal neoantigens in each patient. Targeting multiple clonal neoantigens that are present on all cancer cells, but not on healthy cells, reduces the risk that new mutations can induce immune evasion and therapeutic resistance, and allows individualised treatments to target and destroy tumours without harming healthy tissue.

Alligator Bioscience receives first patent approval for ATOR-1017

On June 23, 2020 Alligator Bioscience (Nasdaq Stockholm: ATORX) reported that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued U.S. Patent No. US 10,689,454 which covers compositions of matter directed to Alligator’s drug candidate ATOR-1017, its wholly owned 4-1BB antibody in clinical Phase I development for the treatment of metastasized cancer (Press release, Alligator Bioscience, JUN 23, 2020, View Source [SID1234561373]). This is the first granted US patent related to ATOR-1017 and its earliest expiry year is 2037.

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"ATOR-1017 is one of our lead clinical assets and I am pleased to get this formal confirmation of our long-term exclusive rights. The patent approval illustrates our active IP strategy, maximizing protection for Alligator’s entire project portfolio in all key global markets, including the US," commented Per Norlén, CEO at Alligator Bioscience.

ATOR-1017 activates 4-1BB receptors which increases the ability of the immune system to detect and kill tumor cells. ATOR-1017 has a unique profile related to the fact that its immune-stimulatory function is stronger in areas where immune cells are abundant, notably in tumors. This creates an opportunity for a strong immune activation that can increase efficacy and reduce side effects for the patient.

The ongoing Phase I study is a dose escalation study in patients with advanced cancer. The study is conducted at three different clinics in Sweden and is planned to include up to 50 patients. Recruitment was temporarily paused in March and April 2020 due to the covid-19 pandemic but has been resumed. The primary objective of the study is to assess the safety and tolerability of ATOR-1017 and to determine the recommended dose for the subsequent Phase II studies.

The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out above, at 08:30 a.m. CEST on June 23, 2020.