Selecta Biosciences Appoints Peter G. Traber, MD as Chief Medical Officer

WATERTOWN, Mass., Aug. 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- (NASDAQ: SELB), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on unlocking the full potential of biologic therapies based on its immune tolerance platform, ImmTOR™, today announced the appointment of Peter G. Traber, MD, to the position of Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Traber has been serving in the same position in an interim capacity, and joins the Company full-time, effective August 1, 2020.

“Since becoming part of our organization, Peter has brought a wealth of expertise from his experience in large pharma, biotech, and academia that has substantially strengthened our clinical development capabilities, and we are extremely pleased that he will be joining us full-time as Chief Medical Officer,” said Carsten Brunn, Ph.D., President and CEO of Selecta. “We’re confident that he will play a critical role in elevating the strength of our science and translating it clinically, as we explore new applications for ImmTOR in biologics, gene therapy, and immunotherapies for autoimmune diseases.”

“I am proud to be part of an organization that is pioneering innovations that may advance the treatment of a number of challenging diseases with unmet needs,” said Dr. Traber. “Selecta has the capabilities and scientific acumen to become the undisputed leader in targeted and specific immune tolerance, and I’m excited to help advance ImmTOR and explore its role in driving innovation that will ultimately help patients.”

As Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Traber will oversee medical affairs, program management, and all aspects of clinical development and strategy, as well as provide scientific and clinical guidance for potential business development initiatives. He is the founder and president of PGT Life Sciences Consulting, a biopharmaceutical consultancy for which he provides drug development strategy, clinical trial design, and scientific oversight for a broad range of companies. In a previous role, Dr. Traber was the President, Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Medical Officer of Galectin Therapeutics. During his tenure, he successfully built a full drug development team and created the strategy to progress its lead compound forward in multiple indications, including a phase 3-ready program in NASH cirrhosis. Prior to Galectin, he served as the Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President, Clinical Development & Medical Affairs at GSK. Previously, he served as the President and CEO of the Baylor College of Medicine, and Chairman of Medicine and CEO of the University of Pennsylvania Health System. His experience also includes managing an academic research laboratory, serving on the editorial boards of medical journals, and he has authored more than 100 research articles, reviews, and book chapters. He received his medical degree from Wayne State University School of Medicine, holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan, and earned a certificate in Medical Leadership from Wharton Business School. He is currently an Adjunct Professor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and serves on the board of Caladrius Biosciences.  

About Selecta Biosciences, Inc.

Selecta Biosciences, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on unlocking the full potential of biologic therapies based on its pioneering immune tolerance platform (ImmTOR™). Selecta is committed to utilizing ImmTOR to potentially improve the efficacy of biologics, enable re-dosing of life-saving gene therapy, and create novel immunotherapies for autoimmune diseases. Selecta’s late-stage product candidate, SEL-212, is designed to be a monthly treatment for chronic refractory gout, a debilitating rare disease with a significant unmet medical need. SEL-212 consists of a combination of its ImmTOR platform co-administered with pegadricase, an enzyme designed to treat patients with symptomatic gout, refractory to standard uric acid lowering treatment. Selecta’s proprietary gene therapy product candidates are in development for certain rare inborn errors of metabolism and incorporate our ImmTOR platform with the goal of addressing barriers to repeat administration. In addition to our own pipeline of core discovery and clinical candidates, Selecta has established collaborative relationships with leading biopharmaceutical companies, including Asklepios BioPharmaceutical (AskBio) and Sarepta Therapeutics for gene therapy, and Swedish Orphan Biovitrum AB (Sobi™) for SEL-212. Selecta is based in Watertown, Massachusetts. For more information, please visit .

Forward-Looking Statements:

Any statements in this press release about the future expectations, plans and prospects of Selecta Biosciences, Inc. (“the company”), including without limitation, Dr. Traber’s responsibilities and duties at the company, the development of product candidates in biologics, gene therapy and immunotherapies for autoimmune diseases, the development and potential of ImmTOR generally, the ability of any of the company’s products to satisfy unmet medical needs, and other statements containing the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “hypothesize,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “target,” “would,” and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including, but not limited to, the following: the uncertainties inherent in the initiation, completion and cost of clinical trials including their uncertain outcomes, the effect of the COVID-19 outbreak on any of the company’s planned or ongoing clinical trials, manufacturing activities, supply chain and operations, the availability and timing of data from ongoing and future clinical trials and the results of such trials, Dr. Traber’s ability to perform as expected, and other important factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of the company’s most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and in other filings that the company makes with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In addition, any forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the company’s views only as of the date of its publication and should not be relied upon as representing its views as of any subsequent date. The company specifically disclaims any intention to update any forward-looking statements included in this press release.

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