Xencor Appoints Former ZymoGenetics CEO, Bruce Carter, to Chairman of the Board
Monrovia, CA-December 7, 2009 - Xencor, Inc., a company using Fc engineering for the discovery and development of next-generation antibodies, announced today the appointment of Bruce Carter, Ph.D. to chairman of the board. Dr. Carter was most recently chief executive officer of ZymoGenetics, a biopharmaceutical company focused on therapeutic proteins for the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, bleeding, cancer and viral indications.
"At ZymoGenetics, Bruce and his colleagues pioneered the idea that valuable information on novel therapeutic proteins can be found locked within our DNA," said Bassil Dahiyat, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Xencor. "He has an entrepreneurial spirit and demonstrated success in navigating partnerships, which will be invaluable to Xencor as we continue to move our pipeline products forward and evaluate potential partnership opportunities."
Shortly after Dr. Carter joined ZymoGenetics in 1986 as vice president of research and development, Novo Nordisk acquired the company. In 1994, he was promoted to corporate executive vice president and chief scientific officer for Novo Nordisk A/S, the then parent company of ZymoGenetics. He led the negotiations that established ZymoGenetics as an independent company from Novo Nordisk in 2000. Prior to this, Dr. Carter held various positions at G.D. Searle & Co., Ltd. and was a Lecturer at Trinity College, University of Dublin. He received a B.Sc. in botany from the University of Nottingham, England, and a Ph.D. in microbiology from Queen Elizabeth College, University of London.
"I look forward to helping Bassil and his team as Xencor continues to advance its proprietary products and build on its already strong base of partnerships," said Dr. Carter.
In addition to serving as the chairman of the board for Xencor, Dr. Carter currently serves as chairman of the board of ZymoGenetics. He also serves on the board of directors for Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Limited, a generic pharmaceutical company, QLT Inc., an ophthalmology company, and the TB Alliance, a non-profit company devoted to better treatment for tuberculosis.
About Xencor
Xencor, Inc. engineers superior biotherapeutics using its proprietary Protein Design Automation® (PDA®) suite of technologies, and is a leader in the field of antibody Fc engineering. The PDA technologies include an XmAb® platform for enhanced effector function (potency) and an Xtend® platform for extended half-life (dosing). The company is advancing multiple XmAb® antibody drug candidates into the clinic, led by anti-CD30 candidate XmAb®2513 in a Phase I clinical trial for the treatment of Hodgkin lymphoma and anaplastic large cell lymphoma, and anti-CD19 candidate XmAb®5574 in pre-clinical development for the treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma and B-cell leukemia. With multiple partners, such as industry leaders Merck, Pfizer, CSL Ltd., Boehringer Ingelheim, and Human Genome Sciences, Xencor is applying its suite of proprietary antibody Fc domains to improve antibody drug candidates for traits such as potency and sustained half-life. For more information, please visit www.xencor.com.
Contact
Kim Richards
Porter Novelli Life Sciences for Xencor
619-849-5377
[email protected]