Mohit Rawat appointed CEO, bringing deep biopharma leadership and a track record of driving innovations in drug discovery to commercial and transactional success; former CEO Robin Carr transitions to new CTO role.
Myricx Bio, a private biotech company focusing on the discovery and development of a novel class of payloads for antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), is scaling ahead of entering the clinic and is pleased to announce the appointment of Boston-based Mohit Rawat as its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and member of the Board of Directors.
Mr Rawat joins from Fusion Pharmaceuticals where he was President and Chief Business Officer (CBO), which was acquired by AstraZeneca for $2.4 billion in 2024. He brings over two decades of experience in the biopharma industry including at Novartis and Abbvie, where he built his expertise in novel drug development, commercial execution, business development and corporate strategy. Mr Rawat has led, developed and launched multiple specialty products in oncology and other therapeutic areas, led multi-billion-dollar topline specialty businesses, and worked across M&A and business development transactions exceeding $5 billion in value.
ADCs have emerged as a transformative approach in cancer therapy. However there remains a critical unmet need due to payload resistance and toxicity. Myricx is translating its founders’ extensive research and world leading insights in N-myristoyltransferase (NMT) biology and chemistry into ADC payloads with a novel, orthogonal and differentiated mode of action (MOA).
Retreatment with the same payload class leads to poor outcomes with a >50% reduction in the objective response rate (ORR). Toxicity is currently a major challenge for ADCs often limiting tolerable ADC doses to levels below those required for substantial anti-cancer efficacy. Many of the leading ADCs have >50% treatment interruptions or dose reductions due to adverse effects. There is thus an urgent need for novel and differentiated ADC payloads.
NMT is critical to maintaining multiple pathways required for cancer cell survival and inhibition of this enzyme drives complete tumour regression, including in challenging tumour types. In addition, due to the completely novel MOA, NMTi-ADCs have a differentiated toxicity profile and the potential to treat cancers that have become resistant to or are unresponsive to current ADCs.
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Following its £90 million ($114 million) Series A financing, with investors including Sofinnova Partners, Novo Holdings, Abingworth, Brandon Capital, Eli Lilly, British Business Bank and Cancer Research Horizons, Myricx is well resourced to invest in its innovative NMT inhibitor ADC payload platform and advance a pipeline of multiple ADC-NMTi programs against validated targets including B7-H3 and HER2 through clinical development.
Myricx recently nominated its lead development candidate and expects to initiate human clinical trials in 2026.
Mohit Rawat, CEO of Myricx Bio, said, “Myricx is a highly ambitious company with the potential to become a leader in ADC therapeutics, with a first-in-class and highly differentiated ADC payload platform that leverages NMT inhibition. The NMTi platform has the potential to deliver the next generation of ADC therapeutics to improve tolerability, overcome payload resistance and offer a wider therapeutic index.
“We are backed by world-class and highly experienced investors and have attracted a talented team in our mission of providing more effective and better tolerated therapeutic options for cancer patients. I look forward to working with the team and the board as we prepare our lead program for clinical development, on the back of impressive pre-clinical data.”
The leadership succession underlines Myricx growth ambitions, with former CEO Robin Carr Ph.D. transitioning to the role of Chief Technology Officer (CTO). The team has been further strengthened with senior leadership appointments: in the UK, Steen Lisby (CMO), Jesper Valbjørn (Senior VP, CMC) and Jonathon Marks-Bluth (VP, Business Development); and, in the US, David Ellis (VP, Regulatory Affairs) and Penny Fatato (Global Head, Clinical Operations).
Dr. Chris Martin, Chairman and Non-Executive Director of Myricx Bio, said, “I am delighted to welcome Mohit and our new team members to the company. Mohit has the expertise to lead Myricx forward through its next stage of growth. He has a proven track record of driving success in biopharma businesses and a deep understanding of oncology and immunology drug development. His previous experience will be instrumental in advancing our innovative NMTi-ADC therapies forward to address the urgent unmet need for the majority of patients who are resistant to or relapse on current therapies.
“On behalf of the board and our investors, I would also like to recognise and thank Robin for his leadership, tenacity and achievements that have delivered the financial resources and outstanding data that attracted Mohit to join the company. I am delighted that Robin will continue to contribute in the newly created role of CTO.”
Source: Globenewswire