Janux Therapeutics Promotes Co-Founder Tommy DiRaimondo, Ph.D. to Chief Scientific Officer
SAN DIEGO, January 08, 2024--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Janux Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: JANX) (Janux), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a broad pipeline of novel immunotherapies by applying its proprietary technology to its Tumor Activated T Cell Engager (TRACTr) and Tumor Activated Immunomodulator (TRACIr) platforms, today announced the promotion of Dr. Tommy DiRaimondo to Chief Scientific Officer.
"The appointment of Tommy to CSO is another important milestone for our company. Tommy was essential in our initial efforts to discover and engineer a tumor-activated technology for solid tumors and has since played a critical role in optimizing the applications for our TRACTr and TRACIr platforms while supporting our clinical programs," said David Campbell, Ph.D., President and CEO of Janux. "Tommy is poised to continue to make transformative contributions as our CSO as we continue to advance our platforms and preclinical pipeline."
In his prior role as Head of Research, Tommy was instrumental in successfully transitioning Janux’s PSMA-TRACTr and EGFR-TRACTr programs from research into clinical trials. Tommy continues to manage the internal and external research operations and plays an integral role in managing the IP, discovery, creation, optimization and expansion of Janux’s preclinical pipeline. Before Janux, Tommy was the co-founder of Sitari Pharmaceuticals based upon his graduate work at Stanford University with Professor Chaitan Khosla. Tommy was a key leader in the Sitari drug discovery and development program, whose successful culmination was the acquisition by GlaxoSmithKline.
Tommy earned his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from Stanford University, and his M.S.E. in Pharmaceutical Engineering and his B.S.E in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Janux’s TRACTr and TRACIr Pipeline
Janux’s first clinical candidate, JANX007, is a TRACTr that targets PSMA and is being investigated in a Phase 1 clinical trial in adult subjects with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). Janux’s second clinical candidate, JANX008, is a TRACTr that targets EGFR and is being studied in a Phase 1 clinical trial for the treatment of multiple solid cancers including colorectal cancer, squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck, non-small cell lung cancer, and renal cell carcinoma. Janux is also applying its proprietary technology to develop a TRACTr designed to target TROP2, a clinically validated anti-tumor target that is overexpressed in various cancer types, such as breast, lung, urothelial, endometrial, ovarian, prostate, pancreatic, gastric, colon, head and neck, and glioma. Janux’s TRACIr drug candidate, JANX009, is designed for targeting both the programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) receptor as well as the costimulatory CD28 receptor on T cells for the treatment of solid tumors. In addition to named programs, Janux is generating a number of unnamed TRACTr and TRACIr programs for potential future development.
About Janux Therapeutics
Janux is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing tumor-activated immunotherapies for cancer. Janux’s proprietary technology enabled the development of two distinct bispecific platforms: Tumor Activated T Cell Engagers (TRACTr) and Tumor Activated Immunomodulators (TRACIr). The goal of both platforms is to provide cancer patients with safe and effective therapeutics that direct and guide their immune system to eradicate tumors while minimizing safety concerns. Janux is currently developing a broad pipeline of TRACTr and TRACIr therapeutics directed at several targets to treat solid tumors. Janux has two TRACTr therapeutic candidates in clinical trials, the first targeting PSMA is in development for prostate cancer, and the second targeting EGFR is being developed for colorectal, lung, head and neck, and renal cancers. For more information, please visit www.januxrx.com and follow us on LinkedIn.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains certain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to be materially different from historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include statements regarding, among other things, Janux’s ability to bring new treatments to cancer patients in need, expectations regarding the timing, scope and results of Janux’s development activities, including its ongoing and planned preclinical studies and clinical trials, the timing of and plans for regulatory filings, the potential benefits of Janux’s product candidates and platform technologies, and expectations regarding the use of Janux’s platform technologies to generate novel product candidates. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially include the risk that compounds that appear promising in early research do not demonstrate safety and/or efficacy in later preclinical studies or clinical trials, the risk that Janux may not obtain approval to market its product candidates, uncertainties associated with performing clinical trials, regulatory filings and applications, risks associated with reliance on third parties to successfully conduct clinical trials, the risks associated with reliance on outside financing to meet capital requirements, and other risks associated with the process of discovering, developing and commercializing drugs that are safe and effective for use as human therapeutics, and in the endeavor of building a business around such drugs. You are urged to consider statements that include the words "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "believes," "estimates," "projects," "promise," "potential," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "intends," "continues," "designed," "goal," or the negative of those words or other comparable words to be uncertain and forward-looking. For a further list and description of the risks and uncertainties Janux faces, please refer to Janux’s periodic and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available at www.sec.gov. Such forward-looking statements are current only as of the date they are made, and Janux assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240108673937/en/
Contacts
Investors:
Andy Meyer
Janux Therapeutics
ameyer@januxrx.com
(202) 215-2579
Media:
Jessica Yingling, Ph.D.
Little Dog Communications Inc.
jessica@litldog.com
(858) 344-8091
