Precision BioSearch recently partnered with Ixaka, an integrated cell and gene therapy company focused on boosting the natural power of the body to cure disease, and was pleased to secure the appointment of Dr Karen Miller as Chief Scientific Officer.

Karen brings more than 30 years of experience in the biotech and pharma industry, leading drug discovery, preclinical and clinical development teams in a wide range of indications and multiple modalities. Most recently, Karen was SVP, Pipeline Research, at Adaptimmune PLC, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel cancer immunotherapy products. Since joining in 2019, she led a team of 120 people to design, engineer and validate advanced cell therapies, successfully expanding the technical capabilities of the translational sciences group and driving the design and implementation of product improvements. Prior to that, Karen was Vice President, Head of the Immunology Innovation Fund at GSK, where she sourced and evaluated project opportunities across multiple therapeutic areas including oncology.

Commenting on the partnership, Nick Robbins-Cherry, CFO at Ixaka, said:

“Ixaka gave Precision BioSearch a challenging brief to find a CSO with the requisite skills and experience. The process was very efficient and well managed by Jemma and Malcolm, who quickly gave us a great list of candidates. Ixaka’s new CSO is a great fit and exactly what we were looking for.”

Commenting on the appointment, Joe Dupere, CEO at Ixaka, said:

“We are very pleased to welcome Karen to our leadership team, given her strong track record of successful development and launch of pharmaceutical programs including a strong focus on immunology and cell and gene therapies and a wealth of experience in functional leadership and strategic planning. Karen has played a fantastic role in the biopharmaceutical sector driving high performance in teams, most recently in cancer immunotherapy.”

About Ixaka: Ixaka is a private cell and gene therapy company with operations in the UK, Spain and France.  The company is focused on the natural power of the body to cure disease with their proprietary technologies enhancing the inherent therapeutic power of cells by targeting curative cells to the site of disease and by directly modifying cells within the body to improve their therapeutic action. Ixaka’s technologies – concentrated multi-cell therapies and targeted nano-particles – demonstrate potential for the treatment of a broad range of serious diseases across oncology, cardiovascular, neurological and ocular diseases, and genetic disorders.

For more information, visit: www.ixaka.com