Business
Design Therapeutics Expands Board of Directors with Key Appointments
CARLSBAD, Calif., June 07, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Design Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: DSGN), a biotechnology company developing treatments for degenerative
About this update from Design Therapeutics, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"CARLSBAD, Calif., June 07, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Design Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: DSGN), a biotechnology company developing treatments for degenerative genetic disorders, today announced the appointments of industry veterans, Heather Behanna, Ph.D., principal of SR One, and Deepa Prasad, managing director of WestRiver Group, to its board of directors effective June 15, 2021. “We are delighted to further strengthen the Design team with the appointments of both Heather and Deepa to our board of directors, who bring a wealth of experience and insights in corporate and financial strategy and biotechnology company growth,” said João Siffert, M.D., president and chief executive officer of Design Therapeutics. “Over the course of 2021, we have continued to progress our pipeline of novel GeneTAC™ therapeutic candidates, and their expertise will be invaluable as we look to make the important transition to a clinical-stage company with the anticipated initiation of clinical development for our Friedreich ataxia program in the first half of next year.” Dr. Behanna currently serves as a principal at SR One Capital Management, concentrating on early-stage innovative therapeutic opportunities. Dr. Behanna is currently a board member of Second Genome and Entasis Therapeutics (ETTX) and a board observer of Dren Bio. Prior to SR One, she was with Sofinnova Investments, and prior to that, was an equity research analyst at Wedbush and JMP Securities, focused primarily on therapies for rare disease. Dr. Behanna was formerly a chemist at the Astellas Research institute and adjunct faculty at the Feinberg Northwestern School of Medicine. Dr. Behanna received her Ph.D. in chemistry at Northwestern University, MSc. in organic chemistry at the Weizmann Institute of Science and B.S. from Tufts University. “Friedreich ataxia is devastating, with no cure or approved disease-modifying treatment option today. I am highly encouraged by the opportunity enabled by Design’s approach to address the underlying cause of this disease,” said Dr. Behanna. “I look forward to working alongside the entire team to help guide the business strategy and development plans, so that we may potentially deliver the first treatment to increase endogenous frataxin for patients with Friedreich ataxia.” Ms. Prasad currently serves as a managing director at WestRiver Group (WRG),...