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, Marissa Russo or Donavyn Coffey, and it will be featured here at the end of each week.
Vir looks to Liu to lead late-stage push
Vir Biotechnology
As Vir pushes its lead hepatitis D combo through phase 3 development, the biotech has tapped an experienced medical expert to light the way. David Liu, M.D., Ph.D., is now Vir’s chief medical officer, after most recently serving in the same role at Nuvation Bio. Liu started his drug development career as a scientist at AstraZeneca before moving to Bristol Myers Squibb. He left BMS after nearly a decade to join Celgene, only for that surging biotech to be gobbled up by BMS four years later.
In addition to the lead hep D candidate, Liu will also play a pivotal role in advancing Vir’s earlier-stage cancer pipeline, leveraging his immuno-oncology expertise. Release
Cerevance strengthens C-suite amid Parkinson’s progress
Cerevance
Days before it reported a phase 3 Parkinson’s disease win, Cerevance appointed Karl Kieburtz, M.D., as its new chief medical officer. Kieburtz has spent most of his career as a professor of neurology at the University of Rochester and has been advising the Boston biotech on its Parkinson’s prospect, solengepras, for the past several years. Kieburtz also co-founded Clintrex Research, a division of BlueRidge Life Sciences, a clinical research company that works with pharmaceutical organizations to operationalize development pathways for new treatments for CNS diseases. Release
Biogen alum preps ProMIS’s budding Alzheimer’s program
ProMIS Neurosciences
ProMIS Neurosciences is bringing Ivana Rubino, Ph.D., on board as its new chief commercial officer ahead of a pivotal phase 1b readout for its investigational Alzheimer’s drug, PMN310.
Rubino is a former executive at both Roche and Biogen, where she helped establish launch-ready Alzheimer’s disease programs. At Biogen, she also helped support the Leqembi franchise, a monoclonal antibody used to treat early-stage Alzheimer's. All told, Rubino brings more than 15 years of experience in biopharmaceutical leadership to the CCO role.
“Ivana’s broad neuroscience and strategic experience will help us build the capabilities needed for ProMIS’ next stage of growth, and her extensive background in Alzheimer’s disease will be particularly valuable as we move toward our 12-month PRECISE-AD topline readout of PMN310 in the first quarter of 2027,” said Neil Warma, president and chief executive officer of ProMIS. Release
> Blood cancer immunotherapy-focused Mendus named uniQure alum Hans Preusting, Ph.D., as the Swiss and Dutch biotech’s newest chief operating officer. Release
> Gavin Koh, Ph.D., is joining London-based RQ Bio as its new chief medical officer to help advance its lead antibody product, RQB01, against seasonal influenza. Koh previously held roles at both AstraZeneca and GSK. Release
> Therna Bioscience is bulking up its AI leadership. The company snagged AI-drug discovery veteran Kevin Green—former chief business officer at Inceptive–as its new chief operating officer. The biotech also added Dave Burke, Ph.D., formerly CTO of Arc Institute, and Harsh Mehta, co-founder and CTO of Mirendil, as AI advisors. Release
> Anirvan Ghosh is the newly appointed senior vice president and head of translational science at AI-native Formation Bio. LinkedIn
> Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center is welcoming Shawn Stapleton, Ph.D., as its new vice president and Chief AI and Innovation Officer. The NCI-designated cancer center also appointed Jessie Minton as vice president and chief digital and information officer. LinkedIn & LinkedIn