Welcome to this week's Chutes & Ladders, our roundup of significant leadership hirings, firings and retirings across the industry. Please send the good word—or the bad—from your shop to Darren Incorvaia or Zoey Becker and it will be featured here at the end of each week.
J&J innovator vaults to Valo
Valo Therapeutics
After more than 13 years at Johnson & Johnson, including most recently serving as new ventures lead for Italy within J&J Innovation, Marcella Origgi is stepping away from the Big Pharma to take on the CEO role at Valo Therapeutics. Origgi will lead Valo’s Helsinki headquarters and Naples subsidiary from Italy and will guide the biotech through a phase 1b trial of lead tumor antigen-coated oncolytic virus candidate PeptiCRAd-1. Valo recently closed a 19 million euro financing round to support the trial. Before joining J&J Innovation, Origgi helped develop and launch several immunology assets at J&J subsidiary Janssen. Release
Alterome snags expert dealmaker as CEO
Alterome Therapeutics
Alterome is altering its executive lineup with Jung Choi as a CEO replacement for co-founder Eric Murphy. Choi is considered an expert in strategic dealmaking and most recently served as an entrepreneur-in-residence at Third Rock Ventures. Over her career, she’s headed up more than 50 deals valued together at over $17 billion. Her resume includes Global Blood Therapeutics’ $5.4 billion sale to Pfizer, which she led as the company’s chief business and strategy officer, and a nine-year stint as head of corporate development at Gilead Sciences. Release
Newleos and the seven new execs
Newleos Therapeutics
It’s in with the new at neuro-focused Newleos, a Boston-based biotech developing treatments for mental health disorders. The company has tapped a veritable army of new vice presidents to push its pipeline forward, including a lead drug candidate for anxiety disorders. The new execs include Sondra Smyrnios as senior VP of clinical and technical operations; Adam Simmons as VP of clinical development and operations; Chris Jepsen as VP of quality; Tiffany Lago, M.D., as executive medical director; Lea Hachigian, Ph.D., as VP of corporate strategy and operations; Kyle Audi as VP of finance; and Brian Shea as VP, head of legal. Release
> Cell therapy maker Artiva Biotherapeutics snagged Bristol Myers Squibb vet Subhashis Banerjee, M.D., as its chief medical officer replacement for Thorsten Graef, M.D, Ph.D. Release
> Sanjay Keswani, M.D., is hanging up the CEO gloves at Immunobrain to pivot to Neurocrine Biosciences to succeed longtime chief medical officer Eiry Roberts, M.D. Release
> XTL Biopharmaceuticals named experienced digital marketing executive Noam Band as CEO while former chief Shlomo Shalev will become the company’s board chairman. Release
> Mark Exley, Ph.D., will help LlfT BioSciences advance its allogeneic neutrophil-based cell therapy as chief scientific officer. Release
> DualityBio, on a mission to become an antibody-drug conjugate powerhouse, ensnared seasoned drug developer Hua Mu, M.D., Ph.D., as global chief medical officer. Release
> Haley Laken, Ph.D., is adding the chief scientific officer title to her resume after taking on the job at autoimmune-disease-focused Zenas BioPharma. Release
> CRO Oncodesign Services tapped acclaimed drug discovery leader Aidan Synnott, Ph.D., to help shake up the company as CEO. Release
> Paul Schaffer, Ph.D., will fill the newly created chief technology officer role at radiotherapeutics maker Telix Pharmaceuticals. Release
> London-based Myricx Bio widened its leadership pool with the addition of Steen Lisby, M.D., as chief medical officer. Release
> Human-tissue-centered TRex Bio welcomed rheumatologist Ariella Kelman, M.D., as its chief medical officer as the company readies its lead TNFR2 agonist program for the clinic. Release
> Flagship Pioneering-backed Prologue Medicines has tapped Raj Chopra, M.D., Ph.D., to lead the company’s viral protein pipeline as chief scientific officer. Release
> Early cancer detection company Freenome has found a new CEO in diagnostics vet Aaron Elliott, Ph.D. Release
> Precision medicine outfit Acrivon Therapeutics is bringing Mansoor Raza Mirza, M.D., on board as chief medical officer, replacing Jean-Marie Cuillerot, M.D. Release
> John Northcott is the new chief commercial officer of Nurix Therapeutics, where he’ll help launch the clinical program for the company’s chronic lymphocytic leukemia asset. Release
> Merakris Therapeutics has promoted R&D VP Roger Ilagan, Ph.D., to the chief scientific officer role to guide development of wound care biologics. Release
> Experienced oncologist Guy Travis Clifton, M.D., is the new chief medical officer of antitumor virotherapy company Calidi Biotherapeutics. Release
> Cardiometabolic company Rivus Pharmaceuticals is opening a new South San Francisco office and expanding its C-suite with David Grainger, Ph.D., as chairman of development and Meg Fitzgerald as chief legal officer. Release (PDF)