There is a new chief executive officer guiding Cambridge, Mass.-based Cadent Therapeutics. This morning, the company announced long-time industry veteran Jodie Morrison will take over the reins of the company.
There is a new chief executive officer guiding Cambridge, Mass.-based Cadent Therapeutics. This morning, the company announced long-time industry veteran Jodie Morrison will take over the reins of the company.
Morrison takes over as CEO from Michael Curtis, who will remain as company president and head or research and development. Peter Barrett, chairman of the board of Cadent Therapeutics and also a partner at Atlas Venture, said Morrison has an extensive background in operational and clinical development leadership. He added that she has guided the growth and development of emerging biopharmaceutical companies across multiple therapeutic areas.
Prior to joining Cadent, Morrison served as interim CEO of Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. Before that, she was president and CEO of Tokai Pharmaceuticals and also held several other leadership positions at the company, including head of clinical affairs and program operations.
Morrison joins Cadent several months after the company secured $40 million in a Series B financing round that has been slated to support the development of the company’s Phase II lead program for two progressive neurological conditions. Its lead program, CAD-1883, an SK (small conductance calcium-sensitive potassium channel) positive allosteric modulator (PAM), is being investigated for the treatment of essential tremor (ET) and spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA).
Morrison said that Cadent has an innovative approach to developing first-in-class therapies to treat unmet needs in movement and cognitive disorders.
The development of CAD-1883 will be overseen by Bob Dagher, an industry veteran who joined Cadent in November as chief medical officer.
In addition to its lead program, Cadent is also developing a preclinical asset to address NMDAr (N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor) hypofunction in people with schizophrenia. In people with schizophrenia, NMDAr dysfunction is a significant contributor to their cognitive impairment. Cadent said its NMDAr program is designed to positively modulate the NMDAr, reversing NMDAr hypofunction and restoring cognitive function. In preclinical studies, treatment has demonstrated the ability to restore auditory novelty detection in a model of NMDAr hypofunction, the company said.
“… the Company is well positioned to deliver meaningful impact for patients with essential tremor, spinocerebellar ataxia and schizophrenia,” Morrison said.
Barrett said Morrison joins Cadent at a critical period of growth, with its lead candidate in the clinic and the schizophrenia asset potentially moving into the clinic.
“We look forward to benefiting from her leadership as Cadent continues to build value through its mission of improving the lives of people with movement and cognitive disorders,” Barrett said.
