Silence Therapeutics chief scientific officer resigns
RNA therapeutics development firm Silence Therapeutics has appointed Richard Jenkins as head of clinical development, with Torsten Hoffmann resigning as chief scientific officer with immediate effect.
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The AIM traded company, which said Hoffman had left "due to personal reasons", also hired industry veteran Dave Lemus as non-executive director.
Jenkins, who has held senior positions at Takeda and GlaxoSmithKline, will oversee the development of the company's main drug candidate, a compound for iron overload, as it progresses towards clinical trials, reporting directly to executive chair Annalisa Jenkins.
The company aims to develop a new generation of medicines which harness the body’s natural mechanism of RNA interference, or RNAi, within its cells. This proprietary technology can selectively inhibit any gene in the genome, specifically 'silencing' the production of disease-causing proteins.
“Richard Jenkins will bolster our clinical development expertise as we progress our iron overload compound into clinical testing," said Annalisa Jenkins.
Certified public accountant Lemus, who currently serves as a non-executive board member of BioHealth Innovation, has held senior positions at Medigene, Sigma Tau Pharmaceuticals, MorphoSys and Hoffman La Roche.
Annalisa Jenkins said: "Dave has joined at a pivotal time for the company. His successful track record and proven leadership in building and managing high performance management teams will strengthen our capabilities as we continue to maximise the potential of our GalNAc-based SRNi platform.”
As of 0920 BST, Silence Therapeutics’ shares were down 1.53% at 141.79p, taking its fall to around 25% in the last three months.