EDWARD LANG JR

CHIEF CORPORATE AFFAIRS OFFICER

Edward became Chief Corporate Affairs Officer in 2019, bringing more than 16 years of communication, public affairs and patient advocacy relations experience in the biotechnology industry. He served as the primary media strategist and spokesperson for large and small biotech companies including Genentech, Roche and Juno Therapeutics. Over his career he helped bring more than 12 new medicines to patients around the world in the fields of oncology, ophthalmology, immunology and rare disease.

PROFESSOR SIR PETER LACHMANN FRS FMEDSCI​

EMERITUS SHEILA JOAN SMITH PROFESSOR OF IMMUNOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE

Sir Peter Lachmann is emeritus Sheila Joan Smith Professor of Immunology at the University of Cambridge, a fellow of Christ’s College, Cambridge and honorary fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge and of Imperial College. He was knighted for service to medical science in 2002.

He has won numerous international accolades including a Gold Medal from the European Complement Network in 1997, the Medicine and Europe Senior Prize, Academie des Sciences de la Santé in 2003.

His primary research interest now is the downregulation of the complement alternative pathway as a treatment for age related macular degeneration. He has previously worked on many aspects of complement biology; on microbial subversion of the innate immune response; on the immunology of measles, on systemic lupus erythematosus and on insect sting allergies.

CLAIRE HARRIS

PROFESSOR OF OPHTHALMOLOGY, CONSULTANT VITREORETINAL SURGEON, UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD

Claire is Professor of Immunology at the University of Newcastle. Her research interests focus on complement and the mechanisms by which it drives inflammatory disease. Her recent work includes functional characterisation of complement protein variants/mutants and autoantibodies associated with diseases such as AMD, atypical haemolytic uremic syndrome (aHUS) and C3 glomerulopathy (C3G). Claire’s current research is focussed on therapeutic approaches for modulation or inhibition of the complement cascade, particularly on strategies to target or ‘home’ therapy specifically to disease sites.

Claire was previously Head of Complement at GlaxoSmithKline (2013-2016) and joined the University of Newcastle in 2016 to further her work in translational research; she is based within the Faculty of Medical Sciences and the National Renal Complement Therapeutics Centre.

ANDREW LOTERY

PROFESSOR OF OPHTHALMOLOGY, CONSULTANT VITREORETINAL SURGEON, UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD

Robert is Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Oxford, Consultant Ophthalmologist at the Oxford Eye Hospital, Honorary Professor of Ophthalmology at the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, Honorary Consultant Vitreoretinal Surgeon at Moorfields Eye Hospital, and the former Theme Leader for Age-related Macular Degeneration research at the Moorfields-UCL Institute of Ophthalmology Biomedical Research Centre. He is also a Fellow of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, Fellow and former King James IV Professor of Surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh and Bodley Fellow of Merton College Oxford. In 2013 he was a recipient of the international ARVO Camras Award: in 2014 the Euretina Lecture; in 2015 the Retinitis Pigmentosa Scientist of the Year Award; and in 2016 received an NIHR Senior Investigator Award.

His clinical and laboratory research is dedicated to finding new treatments for blindness, particularly in patients with incurable retinal diseases, using stem cell based approaches, gene therapy and electronic devices. His laboratory developed the world’s first gene therapy treatments for choroideremia and X-linked retinitis pigmentosa – these clinical programmes are now being pursued by Nightstarx Ltd., a University of Oxford spin-out company of which he is the scientific founder.

DAVID KAVANAGH​

MEMBER OF THE BOARD

David Kavanagh is the Professor of Complement Therapeutics at the National Renal Complement Therapeutics Centre (NRCTC). The NRCTC is a combined clinical, diagnostic and treatment centre for the complement mediated diseases: atypical haemolytic uraemic syndrome (aHUS) and C3 glomerulopathy. All patients in England treated with eculizumab for these diseases are managed through the NRCTC. His University research group has been at the forefront of defining the role of complement in renal disease and is fully integrated with the NRCTC to provide rapid translational benefits to patients.

David moved to Newcastle to start his own lab in 2008 with a Wellcome Trust Fellowship following a Kidney Research UK Fellowship at the University of Edinburgh. He was previously a Fellow at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis. He graduated in Medicine and Immunology from the University of Glasgow in 1998 and obtained his PhD from Newcastle University in 2006. For his work defining the role of complement in aHUS, he was awarded the Renal Association’s Young Investigator (Raine) award. Additionally, he runs a glomerulonephritis and vasculitis clinic at Freeman hospital. He is chairman of the aHUS rare disease working group, an executive committee member of Complement UK.

DAVID KAVANAGH

PROFESSOR OF NEPHROLOGY, NEWCASTLE, ACADEMIC FOUNDER

David Kavanagh is the Professor of Complement Therapeutics at the National Renal Complement Therapeutics Centre (NRCTC). The NRCTC is a combined clinical, diagnostic and treatment centre for the complement mediated diseases: atypical haemolytic uraemic syndrome (aHUS) and C3 glomerulopathy. All patients in England treated with eculizumab for these diseases are managed through the NRCTC. His University research group has been at the forefront of defining the role of complement in renal disease and is fully integrated with the NRCTC to provide rapid translational benefits to patients.

David moved to Newcastle to start his own lab in 2008 with a Wellcome Trust Fellowship following a Kidney Research UK Fellowship at the University of Edinburgh. He was previously a Fellow at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis. He graduated in Medicine and Immunology from the University of Glasgow in 1998 and obtained his PhD from Newcastle University in 2006. For his work defining the role of complement in aHUS, he was awarded the Renal Association’s Young Investigator (Raine) award. Additionally, he runs a glomerulonephritis and vasculitis clinic at Freeman hospital. He is chairman of the aHUS rare disease working group, an executive committee member of Complement UK.

ANDREW LOTERY

PROFESSOR OF OPHTHALMOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON, ACADEMIC FOUNDER

Andrew is Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Southampton, Director of the Clinical Neurosciences Research Group and an Honorary Consultant Ophthalmologist at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust.

Andrew’s scientific research is within the genetic associations of eye disease, with his clinical research focussed on AMD. He has one of the largest patient data-sets and clinical sample banks in the UK. He is the chief investigator on Roche’s Phase 3 trial of lampalizumab for dry AMD and was a co-investigator on the first clinical gene therapy trial for choroideremia. Andrew is an Observer at the Gyroscope Board of Directors.

IAN CLARK

MEMBER OF THE BOARD

Ian Clark joined the board of directors of Gyroscope Therapeutics in 2019. Ian has more than 34 years of experience in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry, most recently serving as CEO and member of the board of directors for Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, until his retirement in 2016. During his seven-year tenure as CEO, Ian and his team brought eleven new medicines to market for patients fighting rheumatoid arthritis, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and various types of cancer. Ian was among the highest rated CEOs by Glassdoor, recognized as the Bay Area’s most admired CEO by the San Francisco Business Times and awarded the Honorable Mentor of the Year by the Heath Business Woman’s Association.

Prior to joining Genentech, Ian held various positions of increasing responsibility at Novartis, Sanofi, Ivax and Searle, working in the USA, UK, Canada, Eastern Europe and France.

Currently, Ian is on the board of directors for Takeda, Agios Pharmaceuticals, Guardant Health, Forty Seven, Avrobio and Corvus Pharmaceuticals. He is an Operating Partner of Blackstone Life Sciences. He is also on the BioFulcrum Board of the Gladsone Institute. Ian previously served on the board of directors of Shire, Kite Pharma, Dendreon, Solazyme and Vernalis. He was also on the Biotechnology Industry Association board of directors and on the Economic Advisory Council of the 12th District of the Federal Reserve.

Ian received his bachelor of science in Biological Sciences and an Honorary Doctorate of Science from Southampton University in the United Kingdom.

DOMINIC SCHMIDT

MEMBER OF THE BOARD

Dominic is a Partner of Syncona Investment Management Ltd. Prior to joining Syncona, he worked for strategy consultancy L.E.K. Consulting. Dominic received his PhD from the Department of Oncology at the University of Cambridge, where he was a Cancer Research UK scholar. He also holds a German Diplom Degree in Biochemistry and his research has been honoured with national and international prizes and published in Cell, Nature and Science.

KHUREM FAROOQ

MEMBER OF THE BOARD

Khurem became Chief Executive Officer in 2019, bringing more than 20 years of experience in drug development and operational leadership to Gyroscope. He previously served as the Senior Vice President of the Immunology and Ophthalmology business unit at Genentech, a member of the Roche Group.

During his eleven-year tenure at Genentech, Khurem led the commercialization and launch planning of a number of medicines in the Immunology and Ophthalmology area and helped move a number of medicines into the pipeline as a member of the Late Stage Portfolio Committee. He also was actively involved in a number of business development assessments for the organization.

Khurem began his career at Aventis in the United Kingdom holding various roles in sales and marketing, including leading several pan-European business initiatives at the European Headquarters in Paris.

Khurem holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration as well as an Honors degree in Biological Sciences.

CHRIS HOLLOWOOD

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD

Chris is the Chief Investment Officer and a Managing Partner of Syncona Investment Management Ltd. Chris is a member of the boards of three Syncona Portfolio companies, NightstaRx Limited, Freeline Therapeutics Limited and Gyroscope Therapeutics Limited.

Previously, he was a partner of Apposite Capital LLP, a venture and growth capital company focused on the healthcare and life science sector. During his time at Apposite, he was involved in a number of investments, which included Ambit Biosciences (acquired by Daiichi Sankyo), Convergence Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Biogen-Idec), Birdrock and the acquisition of a portfolio of nine US healthcare companies which included Zonare Medical Systems (acquired by Mindray) and Ulthera (acquired by Merz).

Before Apposite, Chris had roles with Bioscience Managers Ltd, Neptune Investment Management Ltd and as a medicinal chemist in the pharmaceutical industry. Chris holds a degree in Natural Sciences and a PhD in Organic Chemistry, both from Cambridge University.

DR IAN PITFIELD

VICE PRESIDENT CMC

Ian graduated from the University of Cambridge in 1992 with a PhD in Biotechnology. After a short period working for SAF developing downstream processes for high value, low volume products, Ian moved to SmithKline Beecham/GlaxoSmithKline to start a 17-year Analytical Scientist/Management career in Pharmaceutical Drug development. From June 2012, Ian transitioned to CMC Project Leadership in GSK’s Cell and Gene Therapy CMC platform leading development, validation and regulatory submission of Strimvelis, the world’s first approved ex-vivo autologous gene therapy. Ian has been VP of CMC at Gyroscope Therapeutics since January 2017.

TIFFANY HOWARD

VP COMMERCIAL PLANNING

Tiffany joined Gyroscope in 2019 and brings 20 years of industry experience and leadership across commercial strategy, marketing, field, and operations. She most recently led US marketing and pipeline launch planning for the Ophthalmology portfolio at Genentech. While at Genentech, she also led the Ophthalmology field sales organization as well as built and led various other commercial teams in Immunology. Tiffany has also worked in multiple other therapeutic areas at Biogen, Janssen, and Pfizer. Throughout her career, she has helped deliver numerous innovative medicines to positively impact customers and patients.

ASHWIN DATT

EVP, HEAD OF CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT

Ashwin has more than 25 years of lab management, business operations, and human resources experience in academia and the biotechnology industry. His diverse experience includes leadership roles in R&D, commercial, and manufacturing, leading culturally diverse teams across global regions including the US, Europe, and Asia.

His R&D teams have supported the filing of more than 70 INDs/CTAs/ED Go NMEs in various therapeutic areas including immunology, ophthalmology, oncology, infectious diseases, and neuroscience.
As a commercial leader, he has built teams to support Pipeline Marketing (for immunology, respiratory, and ophthalmology) and a field based team leading business-to-business discussions on various programs supporting medicines in ophthalmology, rhuematology, and respiratory franchises.

In Human Resources, he has led teams in a global matrix environment, including supporting an 8,500 employee global Biologics manufacturing network. Ashwin’s career has spanned innovative organizations including the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), TRW, Amgen, Genentech, Roche, and Juno Therapeutics. More recently he helped build out disruptive start-ups GRAIL, Vitrisa, Allogene, and Sana. He is recognized for his passion to coach and develop people, keeping patients and the unmet need as the guiding compass.

DR JANE HUGHES

CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER

Dr Jane Hughes previously held the role of VP Translation Research at Gyroscope. She is a highly experienced and strategic scientific leader with over 20 years of experience in drug discovery, translational medicine and clinical science gained through the development of projects from therapeutic concept through to early stage clinical development.

Most recently she served as Senior Director of Integrated Drug Discovery at Charles River but also held positions of increasing responsibility at GlaxoSmithKline and MedImmune. Jane graduated from Keele University in 1998 with a PhD in Developmental Immunology.

MIKE KEANE

CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER

A proven leader, Mike brings more than 20 years of experience in medical device research and development. His expertise spans the innovation, design, and commercialization of surgical products across multiple markets including ophthalmology, spine, and sports medicine. He founded Orbit Biomedical and also recently served as Director of Cell-Based Product Delivery in Janssen R&D, where he led the development of the surgical instrumentation and procedure for the delivery of a cell product to the subretinal space. Mike has been instrumental in transitioning this technology out of Janssen R&D and into Orbit Biomedical. Prior to Janssen, Mike worked in various roles of increasing responsibility in R&D at Depuy Synthes Spine and played a key role at an early stage spine-related startup in the Philadelphia area, transitioning technology out of Drexel University.

Mike holds a MEng in Bioengineering from the University of California, San Diego and a bachelor’s degree in Engineering Science and Mechanics from Pennsylvania State University. He is an author of multiple manuscripts in the field of biomedical engineering and an inventor on 12 issued patents.

DR NADIA K WAHEED

CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER

Nadia joined Gyroscope in December 2019, previously she was Director of the Boston Image Reading Center and Consultant at the New England Eye Center, Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston. She received her medical degree summa cum laude from the Aga Khan University Medical School, Pakistan, and a Masters in Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health. She trained in Ophthalmology at the Harvard Medical School/Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary Program in Ophthalmology, which was followed by a fellowship in retina at the Harvard Medical School/Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston. She then joined the Cleveland Clinic Cole Eye Institute as faculty. This was followed by two years of International Ophthalmology where she established the Retina Unit at the Shifa Hospital, following which she joined the Tufts Medical Center in Boston in 2010.

Nadia has authored over 50 papers in peer-reviewed publications. She has co-authored and edited three books in Ophthalmology and has contributed to several more. She has participated as a principal investigator or co-investigator in many clinical trials and laboratory investigations. Her research interests include ocular imaging, diabetic eye disease and age related macular degeneration, as well as clinical trial design and analysis. Her research team was amongst the first to publish on in-vivo changes in the choroidal vasculature in OCT angiography in patients with dry age related macular degeneration, as well as on the sensitivity and specificity of OCT angiography in detecting choroidal neovascularization.

As attending physician specializing in the care of patients with vitreoretinal disorders and ocular imaging at the Tufts University Department of Ophthalmology, Nadia also provided direct instruction of medical students, ophthalmology residents, retina fellows, research fellows and PhD and post-doctoral students. She has received two teaching awards, one from the residents at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and the second from the Shifa College of Medicine.

KHUREM FAROOQ

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Khurem became Chief Executive Officer in 2019, bringing more than 20 years of experience in drug development and operational leadership to Gyroscope. He previously served as the Senior Vice President of the Immunology and Ophthalmology business unit at Genentech, a member of the Roche Group.

During his eleven-year tenure at Genentech, Khurem led the commercialization and launch planning of a number of medicines in the Immunology and Ophthalmology area and helped move a number of medicines into the pipeline as a member of the Late Stage Portfolio Committee. He also was actively involved in a number of business development assessments for the organization.

Khurem began his career at Aventis in the United Kingdom holding various roles in sales and marketing, including leading several pan-European business initiatives at the European Headquarters in Paris.

Khurem holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration as well as an Honors degree in Biological Sciences.