February 20th, 2020
Kallyope Inc., a leading biotechnology company focused on identifying and pursuing therapeutic opportunities involving the gut-brain axis, today announced that Peter Hecht, Ph.D., CEO of Cyclerion Therapeutics, has been appointed to the company’s Board of Directors.
Prior to joining Cyclerion in 2019, Peter was co-founder and CEO of Ironwood Pharmaceuticals from 1998 to 2019. Under his leadership, Ironwood grew into a fully integrated research, development and commercial organization with more than 700 employees. During his tenure the company discovered, developed and commercialized LINZESS® (linaclotide) globally for irritable bowel syndrome with constipation and chronic constipation. In 2019, Peter led the tax-free separation of Ironwood’s non-gastrointestinal (GI) assets and R&D team into Cyclerion, enabling Ironwood to be a profitable GI therapeutics-focused leader. After completion of the spin-off, Hecht joined Cyclerion as its first CEO. He holds a Ph.D. in molecular biology from the University of California at Berkeley and was a post-doctoral research fellow at the Whitehead Institute.
“It is an exciting time to join Kallyope,” said Hecht. “Their unique platform of integrated technologies has led to a new understanding of gut-brain circuits that has, in turn, resulted in the discovery of novel approaches to diseases of high unmet need in multiple therapeutic areas. I look forward to working with the team as the company begins to advance its portfolio of programs towards the clinic.”
“We are delighted to welcome Peter to our Board of Directors at this pivotal time,” said Nancy Thornberry, CEO of Kallyope. “As we progress our lead programs and expand our pipeline and novel platform, Peter’s experience in building innovation-driven biotech startups into mature biopharmaceutical companies will be invaluable for us.”
About Kallyope Inc.
Kallyope, headquartered at the Alexandria Center® for Life Science in New York City, is a biotechnology company dedicated to unlocking the therapeutic potential of the gut-brain axis. The company’s cross-disciplinary team integrates advanced technologies in sequencing, bioinformatics, neural imaging, cellular and molecular biology, and human genetics to provide an understanding of gut-brain biology that leads to transformational therapeutics to improve human health. The company’s founders are Charles Zuker, Ph.D., Lasker Award winner Tom Maniatis, Ph.D., and Nobel laureate Richard Axel, M.D. For more information visit kallyope.com.
Contact
Danielle Cantey
(202) 337-0808
Morgan Warners
(202) 337-0808