Aug. 27, 2020 11:00 UTC

EMERYVILLE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- 4D Molecular Therapeutics (4DMT), a clinical-stage leader in the development of precision-guided AAV gene medicines based on directed evolution, announced the appointment of Susannah Gray to the Board of Directors. Ms. Gray brings more than 30 years of biopharmaceutical experience specifically in corporate finance and capital markets roles, most recently serving as EVP, Finance & Strategy of Royalty Pharma Management, LLC.

Susannahs extensive knowledge and experience in corporate finance and capital markets brings a valuable perspective to 4DMT. said David Kirn, MD, co-founder, chairman and chief executive officer of 4DMT. Susannahs appointment reflects our commitment to augmenting the capital markets expertise on the 4DMT board as we contemplate the capital required to support the clinical and preclinical development of our product candidates, two of which have recently entered the clinic. We look forward to benefiting from Susannahs extensive experience as we advance 4DMTs next-generation gene therapy programs.

Prior to joining 4DMT, Ms. Gray spent 14 years as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Royalty Pharma before retiring in 2019 just ahead of the Companys initial public offering. At Royalty Pharma, Ms. Gray led the Companys efforts to maximize its financial capabilities. She spearheaded the Companys successful implementation of a $2.3 billion credit facility in 2007 and has helped raise over $1.4 billion in equity capital for the Company. Prior to joining Royalty Pharma, Ms. Gray had a 14-year career in investment banking. In her most recent role, she was a managing director and the senior analyst covering the healthcare sector for CIBC World Market's high yield group from 2002 to 2004. She worked in a similar capacity at Merrill Lynch prior to joining CIBC World Markets. Ms. Gray joined Merrill Lynch in April 1999 after nine years at Chase Securities (a predecessor of JP Morgan), working in various capacities within the high yield and the structured finance groups. Ms. Gray received a BA with honors from Wesleyan University and holds an MBA degree from Columbia University.

I am excited to be part of this outstanding team at this key moment in the companys trajectory, said Susannah Gray. 4DMTs next-generation Therapeutic Vector Evolution platform enables the development of gene therapies with improved therapeutic profiles, enabling the company to pursue previously untreatable patient populations and to address a broad range of both rare and large market diseases. I look forward to working closely with the 4D team and supporting its mission to bring optimized gene therapies to patients.

About 4DMT

4DMT is a clinical-stage precision gene medicine company harnessing the power of directed evolution to unlock the full potential of gene therapy for rare and large market diseases in lysosomal storage diseases, ophthalmology, neuromuscular diseases, and cystic fibrosis. 4DMTs proprietary Therapeutic Vector Evolution platform enables a disease first approach to product discovery and development, thereby empowering customization of AAV vectors to target specific tissue types associated with the underlying disease. These proprietary and optimized AAV vectors are designed to provide targeted delivery by routine clinical routes of administration, efficient transduction, reduced immunogenicity, and resistance to pre-existing antibodies -- attributes that could enable the development of gene therapies that overcome known limitations of conventional AAV vectors. 4DMT vectors are designed to exhibit improved therapeutic profiles that enable the company to pursue previously untreatable patient populations and to address a broad range of rare and large market diseases.

4D Molecular Therapeutics, 4DMT, Therapeutic Vector Evolution, and the 4DMT logo are trademarks of 4DMT.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200827005202/en/

Go here to read the rest:
4D Molecular Therapeutics Appoints Susannah Gray to Board of Directors - BioSpace