CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — GC Therapeutics Inc. said it has appointed Kate Haviland as chair of its board of directors and reported progress across its pipeline and TFome™ cellular programming platform, as the company moves toward clinical development of next-generation cell therapies.
The biotechnology company said it remains on track to name a development candidate in 2026 for a first-in-class neurology program targeting demyelinating diseases, including multiple sclerosis. GC Therapeutics is also advancing discovery work on a regenerative cell therapy approach for Type 1 diabetes and continues to expand the capabilities of its TFome™ platform to support future in vivo reprogramming applications.
The company said its initial pipeline programs leverage the modular and scalable nature of TFome™, which it describes as a “plug-and-play” cellular programming system designed to streamline development, manufacturing, and regulatory engagement. GC Therapeutics also reported productive interactions with both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency, with regulators endorsing the TFome™-enabled development model and supporting a streamlined regulatory pathway across the pipeline.
In addition, the company said it has completed its first Cell State Cookbook™, mapping epigenomic transitions across more than 300 human cell states and testing more than two million transcription factor combinations in living human cells. Powered by AI foundation models validated in closed-loop biology, the TFome™ and Cell State Cookbook™ platform is designed to enable precision cell state engineering across cell therapy, in vivo reprogramming, and rejuvenation applications.
“For decades, cell therapy has relied on trial-and-error approaches to cell identity,” said Parastoo Khoshakhlagh, Ph.D., co-founder and chief executive officer of GC Therapeutics. “At GCTx, we are replacing that paradigm with a system that learns from biology at scale and translates those into new classes of medicines. The progress we are announcing today, from the maturation of our pipeline programs to encouraging feedback from global regulators, marks a key turning point for cell therapy. We believe this reflects a new standard for cell state control that is predictable, manufacturable, and extensible across both cell therapy and in vivo reprogramming. With Kate joining us as chair of our Board, we are exceptionally well positioned to sustain our rapid growth and advance our first program into the clinic, where we expect to unlock the full value of our platform.”
Haviland brings decades of biotechnology leadership experience to the role. She most recently served as president and chief executive officer of Blueprint Medicines and previously held the roles of chief operating officer and chief business officer prior to the company’s acquisition by Sanofi in 2025. Earlier in her career, she held senior leadership positions at Idera Pharmaceuticals, Sarepta Therapeutics, PTC Therapeutics, and Genzyme. She currently serves as chair of the board of Fulcrum Therapeutics, as an independent director at Bicara Therapeutics, as a board member of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization, and as a trustee of the Boston Museum of Science.
“GC Therapeutics is tackling the most persistent challenges in cell therapy with a platform that is both scientifically compelling and operationally scalable,” said Haviland. “The company’s approach to cellular programming, manufacturing, and regulatory strategy positions it as a leader who can meaningfully expand patient access to transformative therapies. I am excited to support the team as they move into the clinic.”
GC Therapeutics said TFome™ enables rapid and efficient differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells by identifying optimized transcription factor combinations, allowing for scalable, off-the-shelf cell therapy development. The company said the platform is designed to support the creation of both first-in-class and best-in-class therapies with improved efficiency, quality, and cost compared with conventional approaches.
