NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Celmatix Inc., the leading women’s health biotech focused uniquely on ovarian biology, today announced members of its newly appointed Advisory Board. The interdisciplinary new board includes thought leaders from biopharma, technology, and women’s health. This team will play an instrumental role in supporting the continued success of Celmatix’s lead ovarian senescence drug program as it progresses through preclinical development and its platform partnerships.

Celmatix Founder and CEO, Dr. Piraye Yurttas Beim commented, “We are excited to be convening this incredible team of clinicians and industry veterans through our Advisory Board.” She continued, “Several recent high-profile exits in this therapeutic area, in addition to long-term demographic trends, have created demand for a novel pipeline of therapies in women’s health. However, underinvestment in women’s health R&D over the last few decades has led to a limited pipeline of existing assets. Celmatix has amassed an unprecedented multi-omic data set focused on ovarian biology, which has given us unique insights into the key molecules and pathways underlying ovarian function. The retained and partnered drug programs that have resulted from this platform have the potential to catalyze a new era of women’s health, and we know the guidance of a seasoned team of advisors will be key to capitalizing on this unique opportunity.”

Members of the Advisory Board include:

Linda C. Giudice, MD, PhD; Distinguished Professor, Chair Emerita, and the Robert B. Jaffe MD Endowed Professor in the Reproductive Sciences in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She is a biochemist and reproductive endocrinologist specializing in endometriosis, ovulatory disorders, and infertility.

Amber Cooper, MD, MSCI, FACOG; Reproductive Endocrinologist and Medical and IVF Practice Director of Vios Fertility Institute St. Louis. She is board certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility and speaks nationally and internationally on ovarian aging, primary ovarian insufficiency, genetics, and how cancer and autoimmune disease therapies affect reproductive health and fertility.

Steve England; More than 25 years of drug discovery experience with senior R&D leadership roles at Pfizer, AstraZeneca, and AbbVie. He has personally led drug discovery programs and managed large teams of drug hunters involved in target identification, validation, and prosecution up to and beyond the clinical candidate stage.

Mark Wolters; Previously Vice President of Business Development at Bayer where he led a team of early-stage licensing and transaction professionals and has more than 25 years of pharmaceutical industry experience. In addition to Celmatix, he also serves on the Advisory Board of the Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology IZI in Leipzig, Germany.

Kevin Lynch; Vice President of Business Development at Vir Biotechnology, and previously Chief Business Officer at Recursion Pharmaceuticals and VP and Head of the Global Search and Evaluation group at AbbVie. He also worked in additional business development roles at Abbott/AbbVie and led many successful transactions to grow the companies’ therapeutics portfolio.

Cory Ondrejka; Vice President of Product Management and Technical Advisor to the CEO at Google. Previously, he led the mobile transition at Facebook as Vice President of Engineering where he also led Facebook’s multi-billion dollar acquisition and integration of Oculus VR. Cory was also the Chief Technology Officer of Linden Lab, where he co-created the award-winning virtual world Second Life.

This news follows Celmatix’s announcement that the company had reached a second milestone in its five-year, multi-target alliance with Evotec. This milestone was triggered by Bayer advancing a second drug program centered around a novel Celmatix-identified target from Evotec. The first milestone was announced in June 2020, and was triggered by Bayer advancing the first drug program centered around a novel Celmatix-identified target from Evotec.

The newly appointed Advisory Board will work closely with Dr. Beim and the Celmatix Executive Team as the Company progresses internally developed programs and collaborations with its marquee partners.

About Celmatix

Celmatix is a preclinical-stage women’s health biotech focused uniquely on ovarian biology. With a lead program in ovarian senescence and collaborations in PCOS and non-hormonal contraception with industry leaders, Celmatix is addressing areas of high unmet need by developing the next generation of interventions and pioneering advancements in ovarian health. For more information visit www.celmatix.com.