– USA, TX – Taysha Gene Therapies, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSHA), a patient-centric gene therapy company focused on developing and commercializing AAV-based gene therapies for the treatment of monogenic diseases of the central nervous system in both rare and large patient populations, today announced the appointment of Dr. Kathy Reape, M.D., and Dr. Laura Sepp-Lorenzino, Ph.D., to its board of directors.
“Drs. Reape and Sepp-Lorenzino bring significant gene therapy translational and development expertise to our board,” said Founder and CEO, RA Session II. “Their combined gene therapy experience across preclinical and clinical development will be invaluable as we continue to advance our broad portfolio into the clinic. Across all levels of the organization, we are building a team that has the passion, experience and talent to execute on our mission of eradicating monogenic CNS disease.”
About Dr. Kathy Reape
Dr. Reape was most recently Chief Medical Officer at Spark Therapeutics where she oversaw clinical development, pharmacovigilance, and medical affairs activities and was a key member of the team responsible for the development and commercialization of the first FDA-approved in vivo gene therapy, LUXTURNA, for an inherited retinal disease caused by mutations in both copies of the RPE65 gene. She also oversaw the development of Spark’s pipeline of gene therapies addressing CNS disease, hemophilia, metabolic disorders, and inherited retinal dystrophies. She has over 18 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry in clinical research and development and has been involved with approximately two dozen product approvals including small molecules, biologics, biosimilars, and therapeutic devices.
“Taysha has built a deep pipeline of potentially transformative gene therapies for patients with life-threatening CNS diseases,” said Dr. Reape. “Many of the conditions that Taysha is addressing have no therapeutic alternatives, are associated with a poor quality of life, and often result in a shortened life expectancy. It is important that we rapidly advance these gene therapies into the clinic to serve patients so desperately in need.”
She received both her undergraduate and M.D. degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and completed her internship and residency at the University of Florida and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.
About Dr. Laura Sepp-Lorenzino
Dr. Sepp-Lorenzino is currently the CSO at Intellia Therapeutics and has held several senior positions over her extensive career. Most recently, she was VP and Head of Nucleic Acid Therapies at Vertex Pharmaceuticals. She previously served as Alnylam’s VP and Entrepreneur-in-Residence, where she led the hepatic infectious disease strategies therapeutic area and was a key figure in partnering and in-licensing activities. She spent 14 years at Merck & Co., including as Executive Director and Department Head of the RNA therapeutics discovery biology unit.
“Joining the Taysha board is a truly exceptional opportunity to contribute to the development of multiple innovative gene therapies,” said Dr. Sepp-Lorenzino. “Taysha is taking a leadership position in the industry by combining decades of gene therapy experience with a portfolio of programs that have the potential to address the underlying biology of various CNS disorders in order create an engine for potential new treatments.”
Dr. Sepp-Lorenzino received her degree in biochemistry at the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and her M.S. and Ph.D. in biochemistry from New York University.
About Taysha Gene Therapies
Taysha Gene Therapies (Nasdaq: TSHA) is on a mission to eradicate monogenic CNS disease. With a singular focus on developing curative medicines, we aim to rapidly translate our treatments from bench to bedside. We have combined our team’s proven experience in gene therapy drug development and commercialization with the world-class UT Southwestern Gene Therapy Program to build an extensive, AAV gene therapy pipeline focused on both rare and large-market indications. Together, we leverage our fully integrated platform—an engine for potential new cures—to dramatically improve patients’ lives.
For more information: https://tayshagtx.com/
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