CAMBRIDGE, Mass.– Boston Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing differentiated molecules addressing serious liver diseases, today announced the appointment of Margaret Koziel, M.D., as Chief Medical Officer (CMO). Juan Carlos Lopez-Talavera, M.D., Ph.D., who has served as acting CMO since December 2023, will move to an advisory role to Dr. Koziel and the Boston Pharmaceuticals team as the company advances its promising late-stage candidate BOS-580, an investigational long-acting, once-monthly fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) analogue for the treatment of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH).
“Boston Pharmaceuticals is at an exciting time as we advance our lead program BOS-580 with biopsy results expected soon in patients with stage F2 and F3 disease. We are committed to building a strong organizational structure and leadership team. Dr. Koziel’s rich experience and deep scientific expertise in liver disease are instrumental in achieving our next developmental milestones,” said Sophie Kornowski, CEO of Boston Pharmaceuticals.
“I am excited to join Boston Pharmaceuticals at this pivotal juncture. Backed by a skilled team and strong partnerships, the company is poised to move BOS-580 swiftly and successfully through clinical development to meet patient needs,” said Dr. Koziel.
Dr. Koziel brings 16 years of drug development and executive leadership experience to Boston Pharmaceuticals. She previously held CMO positions for Innoviva Specialty Therapeutics, Inc. and Axcella Therapeutics, Inc. She first joined Axcella as head of the company’s development program for MASH before assuming the role of Vice President, Clinical Development and CMO. Prior to that, she held several positions of increasing responsibility at Kaleido Biosciences, Vertex, and the Novartis Institute for Biomedical Sciences. From target selection through Phase 4 studies, her work has focused on advancing drug development in hepatology and infectious disease among other therapeutic areas such as oncology, rare diseases, long COVID and immunology.
Dr. Koziel also served in academic positions as a professor and assistant vice provost for clinical research at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and as a staff physician at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. Her research interests focused on the immune response to hepatitis C virus, as well as advancing clinical care for HIV for which she has received numerous awards. Dr. Koziel has authored more than 90 publications in journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine and Journal of Clinical Investigation and has served as an associate editor and reviewer for numerous journals. Dr. Koziel obtained her bachelor’s degree and medical degree from Dartmouth College and completed her postgraduate medical training at the New England Deaconess Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital.
