Board appointment

RNS Number : 0742O

Open Orphan PLC

08 June 2022

 

Open Orphan plc

("Open Orphan" or the "Company")

Board appointment

Open Orphan plc (AIM: ORPH), a rapidly growing specialist contract research organisation (CRO) and world leader in testing infectious and respiratory disease products using human challenge clinical trials, announces the appointment of Martin Gouldstone as an Independent Non-Executive Director of the Company with effect from 8 June 2022.Martin will also Chair the Audit & Risk Committee and will be a member of the Nominations Committee and the Remuneration Committee.

Martin brings 30 years of corporate development experience in the CRO, healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors, holding a number of senior roles at healthcare AI businesses. Martin has expertise in executing multi-billion dollar deals across Europe and the US, architecting end-to-end portfolio out-sourcing deals, and negotiating multi-year research partnerships.

Martin is currently Global SVP, Business Development at Owkin, a French-American start-up using artificial intelligence to discover and develop better treatments for unmet medical needs. Previously, Martin has held the roles of Chief Business Officer at both BenevolentAI and Sensyne Health and was a Partner at Results Healthcare, an international M&A advisory firm, where he co-led the company's healthcare practice. Prior to this, Martin was Head of Life Sciences for BDO UK LLP, Senior Director responsible for M&A and joint venture opportunities in Europe for Quintiles (now IQVIA), and Business Development and Licensing Lead at Confirmant Ltd, Pharmacopeia Inc, Sareum Ltd.

Martin holds a BSc in Genetics and has completed a range of post graduate management courses.

Yamin 'Mo' Khan, Chief Executive Officer of Open Orphan, said: "I am pleased to welcome Martin to the Board of Open Orphan. Martin has extensive corporate development experience in the CRO, healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors and held a number of senior roles in healthcare AI businesses. I look forward to working closely with Martin as we drive further growth across the business."

Martin Gouldstone, Non-Executive Director, said: "I am delighted to join the Board of Open Orphan at what is an exciting time for the Company and the infectious disease market as it continues to grow significantly post pandemic. I am delighted to bring my previous three decades of experience in the CRO, healthcare and pharmaceutical industry to the Company as it continues to build and expand on partnerships with leading global biopharma companies."

Regulatory Disclosures

Save for the information set out above and below, there are no further disclosures to be made in accordance with Rule 17, Schedule Two (g) of the AIM Rules for Companies in respect of the appointment of Mr Martin John Gouldstone, aged 55, Martin does not hold an interest in the Company's share capital.

Current Directorships	Past Directorships
Novara Therapeutics Limited	n.a.
Orthopaedic Research UK
Sempiternum Ltd

For further information please contact:

Open Orphan plc		[phone]
Yamin 'Mo' Khan, Chief Executive Officer
Liberum Capital (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker)			[phone]
Ben Cryer / Edward Mansfield / Phil Walker / Will King
finnCap plc (Joint Broker)			[phone]
Geoff Nash / James Thompson / Richard Chambers
Davy (Euronext Growth Adviser and Joint Broker)			[phone]
Anthony Farrell
Walbrook PR (Financial PR & IR) Paul McManus / Sam Allen / Louis Ashe-Jepson		[phone] or  [e-mail] [phone] / [phone] / [phone]

Notes to Editors

Open Orphan plc  (London and Euronext: ORPH) is a rapidly growing contract research company that is a world leader in testing infectious and respiratory disease products using human challenge clinical trials. The Company provides services to Big Pharma, biotech, and government/public health organisations.

The Company has a leading portfolio of human challenge study models for infectious and respiratory diseases and is developing a number of new models, such as malaria and COVID-19, to address the dramatic growth of the global infectious disease market. The Paris and Breda offices have over 25 years of experience providing drug development services such as biometry, data management, statistics CMC, PK and medical writing to third party clients as well as supporting the London-based challenge studies.

Open Orphan runs challenge studies in London from its Whitechapel quarantine clinic, its state-of-the-art QMB clinic with its highly specialised on-site virology and immunology laboratory, and its newly opened clinic in Plumbers Row. To recruit volunteers / patients for its studies, the Company leverages its unique clinical trial recruitment capacity via its FluCamp volunteer screening facilities in London and Manchester. The newly opened facilities have expanded the scope of the business to enable the offering of Phase I and Phase II vaccine field trials, PK studies, bridging studies, and patient trials as part of large international multi-centre studies.

Building upon its many years of challenge studies and virology research, the Company is developing an in-depth database of infectious disease progression data. Based on the Company's Disease in Motion® platform, this unique dataset includes clinical, immunological, virological, and digital (wearable) biomarkers.

 

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