Exhibit 99.1
AVROBIO, Inc. Appoints Philip J. Vickers to its Board of Directors
Industry leader brings global expertise, including as Shire’s former Global Head of
Research and Development, to help further accelerate momentum and growth
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Jan. 07, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —AVROBIO, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVRO) (the “Company”), a clinical-stage gene therapy company, today announced the appointment of Philip J. Vickers, Ph.D., to its Board of Directors. Dr. Vickers brings a wealth of global pharmaceutical and biotechnology expertise to AVROBIO, with more than 25 years’ experience in the development and approval of innovative biologics and small molecules to treat diseases in a wide range of therapeutic areas. The Company also announced that Scott Requadt is transitioning off AVROBIO’s board to become CEO of a Blackstone portfolio company.
“Phil is a great addition to our Board,” said Geoff MacKay, President and CEO of AVROBIO. “His deep knowledge of lysosomal storage disorders, real and broad industry leadership and his experience leading Shire’s R&D – with 75% of about 40 clinical development programs in rare diseases—are all invaluable in AVROBIO’s next stage of growth. I’d also like to acknowledge the significant contributions of Scott Requadt to AVROBIO and congratulate him on his new CEO role.”
Dr. Vickers currently serves as President and CEO of Northern Biologics, Inc., a company focused on the development of monoclonal antibodies as immuno-oncology therapeutics to treat targeted populations of cancer patients. Prior to joining Northern Biologics, from 2010 to 2017, Phil was Global Head of Research and Development at Shire, where he was responsible for overseeing preclinical research and development, clinical research, regulatory affairs, and medical affairs. Phil oversaw Shire’s growing product portfolio and, as Executive Vice-President and a member of Shire’s Executive Committee, he played a key role in developing and executing Shire’s global business strategy, with a particular focus on rare diseases. Phil is also a member of the board of directors of Revance Therapeutics. Prior to joining Shire, Phil had roles of increasing responsibility in drug discovery in a range of therapeutic areas at Merck, Pfizer, Boehringer-Ingelheim and Resolvyx. Phil holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Toronto, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Biochemistry from the University of Salford, Manchester U.K. He was also a Visiting Fellow at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland.
About AVROBIO, Inc.
AVROBIO, Inc., is a Phase 2 clinical-stage gene therapy company developing gene therapies to potentially cure rare diseases with a single dose. AVROBIO’slentiviral-based gene therapies employ hematopoietic stem cells that are collected from the patient and then modified with a lentiviral vector to insert a functional copy of the gene that is defective in the target disease. AVROBIO is focused on the development of its gene therapy,AVR-RD-01, inFabry disease, as well as additional gene therapy programs in otherlysosomal storage disorders includingGaucher disease,cystinosis andPompe disease. AVROBIO is headquartered
