ROCKVILLE, Md., January 7 /PRNewswire/ -- MacroGenics, Inc, a privately held biotechnology company that develops immunotherapeutics to treat autoimmune disorders, cancer and infectious diseases, today announced the appointment of Dr. Anastasia Daifotis as Senior Vice President, Clinical Development. "We are very fortunate to attract another exceptionally talented professional to the management team at MacroGenics," said Dr. Scott Koenig, President and CEO. "Anastasia’s impressive clinical development experience combined with her senior leadership skills will complement our management team’s expertise as we broaden and advance our pipeline towards commercialization."
Dr. Daifotis joins MacroGenics after a distinguished 16 year career in clinical development and global medical affairs management at Merck & Co. For the past two years, Dr. Daifotis served as Vice President, Global Medical Affairs, where she led the organization that provides medical support and information to the franchises, markets, healthcare professionals and patients related to Merck’s products and related disease areas. From 2006-2007, she served as Vice President and General Manager, Respiratory, Bone, Arthritis and Analgesia. In this role, she built and led a cross-functional team and had responsibility for Merck’s largest franchise. From 1993 to 2006, Dr. Daifotis held several roles within Merck’s Clinical Research group, each with increasing responsibility, leading to her position as Vice President, Clinical Research and Therapeutic Area Head for Bone, Endocrine, Immunology and Analgesia. In her various clinical development roles at Merck, she led or supported the development of several commercialized pharmaceutical products.
Prior to joining Merck, Dr. Daifotis completed her general medical training at Mount Sinai Medical Center and was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Endocrinology at the Yale University School of Medicine. While there, she studied the regulation of parathyroid-hormone-related gene in normal tissue. She holds an M.D. from Albany Medical College and a B.A. from Princeton University.
"Anastasia joins us at a pivotal time in MacroGenics’ history. Her clinical development and management skills will be keenly important as we continue to execute on the growth of our company," stated Dr. Koenig.
MacroGenics is a private, venture-backed biotechnology company that focuses on the discovery, development and delivery to patients of novel biologics for autoimmune disorders, cancer and infectious diseases. Since its founding in 2000, the company has built a fully-integrated set of capabilities in monoclonal antibody product development. The company’s product development efforts leverage three proprietary technology platforms: (1) cancer stem-like cells; (2) Dual Affinity Re-Targeting (DART), which allows the company to incorporate multiple specificities within a single molecule; and (3) Fc optimization, which enhances antibody-dependent effector functions. These powerful sets of capabilities and technology platforms have enabled MacroGenics to build a proprietary pipeline of innovative product candidates. The company’s lead program, teplizumab, is an anti-CD3 antibody being developed for the treatment of autoimmune diseases. In October 2007, MacroGenics and Eli Lilly announced a global strategic alliance to develop and commercialize teplizumab as well as other potential next-generation anti-CD3 molecules. For more information about MacroGenics, please visit www.macrogenics.com.
Statements made in this news release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "expects," "believes," "intends," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those projected in any forward-looking statement. Specifically, there are a number of important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated, such as the Company’s ability to raise additional capital, and risks related to the Company’s ability to initiate, and enroll patients in, planned clinical trials. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or developments, except as required by law.
Contacts:
Scott Koenig, M.D., Ph.D., President and CEO or Jim Karrels, Vice President, CFO
both of MacroGenics, Inc., +1-301-251-5172, info@macrogenics.com