WAYNE, Pa.– NFlection Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel drug candidates for rare RASopathies, today announced that it has appointed William Hodder as CEO. The company also named Gerd Kochendoerfer, Ph.D., as Chief Operating Officer, Libbie Mansell, Ph.D., MBA, as SVP of Global Regulatory Affairs & Quality Assurance, and Patrice Horwath as VP of Clinical Operations.
Mr. Hodder brings over 30 years of broad biopharmaceutical industry experience including fundraising, business development, corporate strategy, product marketing, sales, and product development to NFlection, most recently serving as Chief Business Officer at Escient Pharmaceuticals where he was responsible for all financing, licensing and M&A activity, and overseeing corporate operations and administrative functions while developing and implementing infrastructure to support the growth of the organization.
At NFlection, Mr. Hodder will lead efforts to discover and develop effective, targeted therapies for rare disorders driven by aberrant activation of the RAS pathway (RASopathies), initially focusing on cutaneous neurofibromas in neurofibromatosis type 1, disfiguring congenital birthmarks (including keratinocytic epidermal nevi and nevus sebaceous), and immunosuppressant-mediated squamous cell carcinoma.
“NFlection has achieved several significant milestones in 2021, under the leadership of Chris Powala, including the FDA granting orphan drug designation for NFX-179 for the treatment of cutaneous neurofibromatosis type 1,” said Mr. Hodder. “It is an exhilarating time to join NFlection as the company progresses NFX-179 Gel to Phase 2b, as we believe it is an important novel therapy for the treatment of RASopathies, such as cutaneous neurofibromatosis, and other unmet medical needs.”
Further strengthening the leadership team, NFlection has appointed three key executives, including:
Gerd Kochendoerfer, Ph.D., has been named COO overseeing R&D operations. Dr. Kochendoerfer has over 20 years of experience in drug development, operations, and program management in the biotech and specialty pharma industry. Before NFlection, he was SVP and Head of Operations at PellePharm, a BridgeBio company, where he was responsible for oversight of R&D and built quality and business systems/infrastructure from the ground up for the development of an orphan cancer drug candidate with Breakthrough Designation status addressing a rare genetic disease.
Libbie Mansell, Ph.D., MBA, RAC, will serve as SVP of Global Regulatory Affairs & Quality Assurance. Dr. Mansell has over 30 years of experience in Product Registration and Development Strategy who has demonstrated success in translating innovative science and technology into high-quality, commercially attractive medicines for serious and/or rare diseases. Prior to joining NFlection, she served as SVP, Regulatory Affairs, for AskBio (acquired by Bayer in December 2020).
Patrice Horwath has been appointed VP of Clinical Operations, overseeing the day-to-day operation of all clinical development. Ms. Horwath has over 20 years of experience directing global pharmaceutical, medical device and combination product development and successfully led multiple clinical programs through Phase I-IV studies, global regulatory approvals, product launch and clinical affairs management including medical education and scientific communications. She joined NFlection from Kalika Biosciences/Ralexar Therapeutics.
