Epygenix Therapeutics Announces Appointment of Dr. Lorianne Masuoka as Chief Medical Officer
PARAMUS, N.J., May 23, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Epygenix Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing safe, effective, and patient-friendly drugs for rare and intractable forms of genetic epilepsy, announces the appointment of Lorianne Masuoka, MD as Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Masuoka is a highly accomplished clinical development executive with a medical background in neurology and a successful track record of managing clinical programs, including in neurological indications, from early stage to approval.
“We are very excited to have Lorianne join the executive leadership team. She brings to us very senior-level and extensive expertise in the clinical development of therapies in rare epilepsies. Her experience will benefit Epygenix tremendously as the ARGUS trial for EPX-100 in Dravet Syndrome and the rest of the pipeline progresses,” said Darren Cline, President and Chief Executive Officer at Epygenix.
Dr. Masuoka is a board-certified neurologist and brings over 25 years of experience developing high-value pipelines that have resulted in drug approvals and strategic alliances. Prior to joining Epygenix, Dr. Masuoka was most recently Chief Medical Officer at Marinus Pharma where she led the initiation of phase 3 trials of ganaxolone, including in children with CDKL5 deficiency disorder and PCDH19 Epilepsy. Before that, she served as Chief Medical Officer at In Vivo Therapeutics, Cubist Pharmaceuticals (now Merck), and Nektar Therapeutics where she created and managed high-performing clinical development teams and oversaw clinical programs across multiple therapeutic areas. Previously, she also held various roles of increasing responsibility at Five Prime Therapeutics (now Amgen), Chiron Corporation (now Novartis), and Berlex Laboratories (now Bayer). Aside from her executive roles, Dr. Masuoka also serves as a Director on the Board of Opiant Pharmaceuticals. She has a medical degree and completed her residency in Neurology at the University of California, Davis. She completed her epilepsy fellowship at Yale University.
“Lorianne will be a great clinical development leader for Epygenix. She has not only deep expertise in neurology indications such as epilepsy but also a strong track record in advancing pipelines through the clinic. I am confident her leadership will help us bring promising therapies to our patients,” said Scott Baraban, Ph.D., a co-Founder, Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board, and Director of the Board at Epygenix.
“I am excited to join the vibrant team at Epygenix. We have an important opportunity to bring promising therapies to patients with rare epilepsies for whom there is great unmet need,” said Dr. Masuoka, “I look forward to leveraging my clinical and industry expertise to accelerate the development of our pipeline.”
About Epygenix Therapeutics, Inc.
Epygenix Therapeutics, Inc. is a precision medicine-based biopharmaceutical company focused on genetically screening, discovering and developing drugs to treat rare and intractable forms of genetic epilepsy in childhood, such as Dravet Syndrome. Epygenix is currently focused on developing EPX-100, EPX-200, and EPX-300. These drug candidates reduce convulsive behavior and electrographic seizure activity and were discovered in a zebrafish Dravet Syndrome model which replicates the genetic mutation and mimics the human pathology.
Epygenix’s largest shareholder is Mstone Partners, an entrepreneurial biotech incubator in the form of a holding company which owns and manages a portfolio of drug development companies. Mstone focuses on developing novel and repurposed drugs for rare, neurodegenerative disorders. Since 2016, Mstone has invested in two companies in the US and one in Hong Kong which are now in advanced clinical stages with US FDA. Mstone has also established a number of portfolio companies under the Curestone Platform, which manages a portfolio of drug development companies in a centralized, hub-and-spoke model.
For more information, please visit www.epygenix.com.
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