NEW YORK and LONDON, June 13, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Akari Therapeutics, Plc (Nasdaq: AKTX), a late-stage biotechnology company focused on developing advanced therapies for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, today announced the appointment of Melissa Bradford-Klug as Chief Operating Officer, effective July 1, 2022. In this position, she will lead business development, including financing and partnering strategies, acceleration of prioritized nomacopan late-stage and preclinical development programs, as well as other business operations. Ms. Klug has more than 25 years of experience as a leader within companies ranging from large global healthcare organizations to biotech startups. She has a strong track record of developing and executing capital markets strategies for private and public companies, as well as experience in operations management and corporate and business development.
“We are very pleased to have an accomplished executive of Melissa’s caliber at Akari to lead our business development and bold growth strategies as we accelerate two nomacopan late-stage clinical trials in bullous pemphigoid and pediatric hematopoietic stem cell transplant-related thrombotic microangiopathy, as well as preclinical work on PAS-nomacopan in geographic atrophy,” said Rachelle Jacques, President and CEO of Akari Therapeutics. “Melissa’s background and capabilities in business development and operations put our company in a strong position to fully realize the promise and value of our pipeline on behalf of investors, patients and other stakeholders.”
Prior to joining Akari Therapeutics, Ms. Klug was President and Chief Business Officer at RareStone Group, where she led identification and execution of strategic transactions for rare disease development programs for the China market. As co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of the women’s health startup, Mayfield Pharmaceuticals (now Harrow Health), she created the company’s strategy, secured funding, drove clinical development and oversaw operations. Ms. Klug has a strong track record of successful fundraising, global acquisitions, licensing, and development collaborations. She has held senior strategy and corporate/business development roles at Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, AMAG Pharmaceuticals, Mallinckrodt and Baxter International. She also has held commercial and research and development positions at Eli Lilly and Company and Monsanto. Ms. Klug is a member of the MassBio Board of Directors and Gender Diversity Committee and is a MassConnect mentor. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Maryville University in St. Louis, Missouri and an MBA from DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois.
“It is an exciting time to be joining the Akari team as the company advances its lead asset, nomacopan, toward pivotal clinical trials and potential regulatory filings in the U.S. and Europe,” said Melissa Bradford-Klug. “I was attracted to Akari because of the significant opportunities for company growth and value creation, and the possibility of delivering life-changing treatment options for patients with significant unmet needs.”
About Akari Therapeutics
Akari Therapeutics, plc (Nasdaq: AKTX) is a biotechnology company focused on developing advanced therapies for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Akari’s lead asset, investigational nomacopan, is a bispecific recombinant inhibitor of C5 complement activation and leukotriene B4 (LTB4) activity. The Akari pipeline includes two late-stage programs for bullous pemphigoid (BP) and thrombotic microangiopathy (TMA), as well as earlier stage research and development programs in eye and lung diseases with significant unmet need. For more information about Akari, please visit akaritx.com.
