SAN FRANCISCO– Herophilus, a leading biotechnology company developing neurotherapeutics to cure complex brain diseases, today announced the appointment of Scott Saywell as Chief Business Officer. Saywell will serve on the executive leadership team overseeing the development of strategic partnerships that will enable the company to identify novel therapeutic targets and treatments for disorders including neurodevelopmental, psychiatric, and neurodegenerative diseases.
Mr. Saywell brings to Herophilus over twenty-five years of experience in the biotech industry in a variety of roles, most recently as Vice President, Corporate Development and Strategy at Theravance Biopharma. Across several companies, Saywell has completed transactions with a combined potential value of more than $2 billion. He also led the commercial planning activities for a first-in-class personalized cancer vaccine and helped establish one of the world’s first high-throughput DNA sequencing operations. Saywell obtained his B.S. from the University of California, Los Angeles and his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University.
“With their groundbreaking approach and powerful in vitro human brain tissue technology, Herophilus is poised to lead the next generation of neurological drug discovery,” said Saywell. “I’m excited to join the world-class team at Herophilus to drive strategic partnerships that will enable the company to deliver transformative therapeutics for those affected by devastating brain diseases.”
“As an industry veteran with deep experience working with innovative biotech platforms and therapeutics, Scott is a valuable addition to our team,” said Saul Kato, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of Herophilus. “We are pleased to welcome him to Herophilus and look forward to his leadership as we continue to advance the boundaries of drug discovery.”
Saywell’s appointment follows the addition of Sharath Hegde, Ph.D. as Chief Scientific Officer and Brad Savall, Ph.D. as Vice President and Head of Chemistry.