— Baksh to Grow TAAV Synthetic DNA Manufacturing Business and Accelerate Access to Safer Adeno-Associated Virus (AAV) Therapies —
SAN SEBASTIÁN, Spain, November 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — TAAV Biomanufacturing Solutions, S.L. (TAAV), an independent wholly-owned subsidiary of Asklepios BioPharmaceutical, Inc. (AskBio), and a member of the global Bayer group of companies, today announced the appointment of Dr. Dolores Baksh as Chief Executive Officer. Baksh brings to TAAV, a world-leading synthetic DNA manufacturer, a successful 20-year history of biotechnology R&D, product development and cGMP manufacturing leadership.
“Dolores’ diverse biotech background and therapeutic manufacturing expertise will immediately help grow TAAV’s synthetic DNA manufacturing business around the world,” said Sheila Mikhail, TAAV Chairman of the Board and Co-Founder and CEO. from AskBio. “The Board appreciates his strategic vision and long history of operational execution, which are critical to building product leadership for TAAV-produced doggybone DNA™1 (dbDNA™) as a safe and highly effective alternative to plasmid DNA.”
TAAV’s state-of-the-art facility in San Sebastian, Spain, is specifically designed for the manufacture of high-quality dbDNA™ for clinical, preclinical, and investigational grade AAV therapies. We believe that the synthetic process of TAAV will lead to high yields on a small scale and shorter manufacturing times, facilitating faster production of AAV and increasing safety by removing residual bacterial sequences from plasmid DNA.
“This is an exciting time for TAAV and AAV therapies. I look forward to working alongside our exceptional and growing team to establish TAAV as the global standard for synthetic biotechnology,” added Baksh. “I believe that TAAV will play a transformative role in increasing the safety and accessibility of AAV therapies for those in need around the world.”
Baksh joins TAAV from Akron Biomanufacturing, where she served as the company’s Business Unit Head and Vice President of Commercial Biomanufacturing, leading its growth strategy for the production of cGMP plasmids and gene-editing nucleases. She has also held various leadership positions at GE Healthcare Life Sciences; GE Venture start-up, Vineti, Inc. and Organogenesis, among others. In these roles, Baksh established innovative cell and gene therapy product development strategies across organic and inorganic approaches, brought to market software to scale and digitize cell manufacturing systems, and played a leading role in approving the first allogeneic product FDA-approved cell-based.
Baksh received his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Toronto. He will split his time between Boston, Massachusetts, and TAAV’s manufacturing facility in San Sebastian, Spain.
About TAAV
TAAV Biomanufacturing Solutions, S.L. (TAAV) is a cGMP manufacturer of doggybone DNA™ (dbDNA™), a synthetic DNA material used for adenovirus (AAV) gene therapies. The company is a wholly owned and independent subsidiary of Asklepios BioPharmaceuticals (AskBio), and AskBio is a wholly owned and independent subsidiary of Bayer AG. dbDNA™ is manufactured using an enzymatic process and produced under ISO classified production suites following GMP standards for research, clinical and commercial applications of synthetic DNA in AAV therapeutic vectors. Synthetic dbDNA™ is as an alternative to plasmid DNA, commonly used in AAV manufacturing, and leads to higher yields of DNA material. The use of synthetic dbDNA™ material can significantly shorten manufacturing lead times and facilitate faster production of AAVs with a higher safety profile by removing residual bacterial sequences from plasmid DNA in the AAV product. TAAV was founded in 2019 and became 100% owned by AskBio in 2022. Company headquarters, manufacturing facilities, and laboratories are in San Sebastian, Spain. For more information, visit taav.com.
1doggybone™, doggybone DNA™ and dbDNA are trademarks of Touchlight Genetics Limited. The technology to manufacture dbDNA™ is licensed from Touchlight IP Ltd.
TAAV Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains “forward-looking statements.” Any statement contained in this press release that is not historical fact may be considered a forward-looking statement. Words such as “believes”, “anticipates”, “plans”, “expects”, “intends”, “potential”, “possible” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the technology and manufacturing process of TAAV. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond TAAV’s control. Known risks include, but are not limited to: TAAV may not be able to execute its business plans and objectives, including compliance with anticipated or planned regulatory requirements, its reliance on third parties, clinical development plans, manufacturing plans and processes, and the production of your product, due to various reasons, such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, possible limitations of the company’s financial and other resources, manufacturing limitations that may not be anticipated or resolved in time, possible disagreements or other issues with our collaborators and third-party partners; and regulatory, judicial, or agency comments or decisions, such as comments and decisions of the United States Food and Drug Administration or the United States Patent and Trademark Office or the European pharmaceutical authorities. Any of the above risks could materially and adversely affect TAAV’s business and results of operations. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements contained in this press release. TAAV or its parent companies undertake no obligation to publicly update their forward-looking statements based on events or circumstances after the date of this release.
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