Enthera Pharmaceuticals appoints Antonio Speziale as Chief Medical Officer

Antonio Speziale joins Enthera with drug development and commercialization experience from roles at Galapagos, Shire, Novartis, Genzyme and Wyeth

Milan, Italy, 4 October 2021 – Enthera Pharmaceuticals (“Enthera”), a biotech company developing first-in-class biologics for selected autoimmune conditions based on the discovery of a novel apoptosis pathway, has appointed Antonio Speziale as Chief Medical Officer.

Antonio will lead Enthera’s clinical team as they advance the Company’s lead candidate, Ent001, through proof-of-concept studies and into Phase I clinical trials for type 1 diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease. He will also support efforts to further expand Enthera’s pipeline, using proceeds from the recent Series A financing (raising €35 million) to open new programs.

Antonio brings 22 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry, ranging from translational medicine to late-stage drug development and commercialization. He has successfully contributed to the clinical development strategy and registration of numerous small molecules and biologics across therapeutic areas such as gastroenterology, rheumatology, nephrology, transplantation and rare diseases, at both global and regional levels.

Antonio joins Enthera from Galapagos, where he was Translational Medicine Leader. He previously held senior management positions at several other life sciences companies, including roles as Global Program Clinical Head at Novartis, Medical Director, Italy at Shire; Manager of Medical Affairs at Genzyme; and Senior Product Manager at Wyeth.

Giovanni Amabile, CEO at Enthera, commented: “We are delighted to welcome Antonio, who brings highly valuable clinical and scientific expertise, particularly in the area of immunology. Antonio will play a crucial role in steering our lead candidate, Ent001, through the clinic and to commercialization, in addition to the expansion of our pipeline as we turn our attention to fibrotic conditions and other disease areas.”

Antonio Speziale, newly appointed Chief Medical Officer at Enthera, stated: “Enthera’s regenerative immunology concept is an innovative and unique approach for the treatment of underserved autoimmune disorders. It holds great promise as unlike most other therapeutics being developed for such conditions, it offers the chance to re-establish cell and organ function, reversing disease progression. I look forward to working with Giovanni and the wider team as we progress into the clinic and advance their overarching clinical development strategy.”

In addition to his industry experience, Antonio is a Board-certified surgeon and author of several publications in the areas of transplantation, immunology and rheumatology in major peer-reviewed journals. His academic experience focused on the execution of kidney and liver transplantation, organ harvesting and sharing, liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma, and implementation of immunosuppressive regimens.

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Notes To Editors

About Enthera

Enthera Srl is a biotech company developing first-in-class biologics to transform the treatment paradigm of specific autoimmune conditions by re-establishing stem cell capabilities in a non-traditional way. The Company’s primary target indications are type 1 diabetes (T1D) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Enthera’s pioneering approach capitalizes on the key discovery of the IGFBP3/TMEM219 pathway, which is involved in beta cell and stem cell apoptosis in pancreas and gut, respectively.

The Company is building a pipeline of inhibitory monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and fusion proteins targeting the pathway via multiple angles. Its lead program Ent001 is the only drug in development with the potential to restore the endogenous pancreatic stem cell compartment in T1D as well as the original intestine structure in IBD, in order to re-stablish organ function.

Enthera is a private company headquartered in Milan, Italy and founded in 2016 by Prof Paolo Fiorina and Dr Francesca D’Addio at BiovelocITA, an Italian biotech accelerator. The Company is backed by Sofinnova Partners S.A.S., AbbVie INC, JDRF T1D Fund, Roche Finance LTD and a number of private investors. Enthera’s discovery engine and assets are protected by a broad portfolio of patents.

For more information, visit https://www.entherapharmaceuticals.com/

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Issued for and on behalf of Enthera by Instinctif Partners.

For more information please contact:

Enthera Pharmaceuticals
Giovanni Amabile, CEO
E: info@entherapharmaceuticals.com

Instinctif Partners (media enquiries)
Melanie Toyne-Sewell / Agnes Stephens / Siobhan Sanford
Tel: +44 20 7457 2020
E: enthera@instinctif.com