Plano-based Secretome Therapeutics has reshaped its leadership team, hiring four executives and moving its chief medical officer into a new role as it heads toward late-stage trials for its lead therapy.
The clinical-stage biotechnology company, which develops therapies derived from neonatal cardiac progenitor cells, named Teji Singh, M.D., chief medical officer; David Chapman senior vice president of operations; Karin Lucas, Ph.D., vice president of medical affairs; and Maggie Loeffler, CPA, vice president of finance and administration. Marshelle Smith, M.D., moves from chief medical officer to chief development officer.
“Secretome is evolving into a premier, rare disease-focused biopharma company, and each of the senior leaders joining our team has deep experience building world-class drug development organizations focused on rare diseases,” CEO and co-founder Vinny Jindal said in a statement. “With our leadership team in place, we are well-positioned to advance STM-01 into late-stage clinical studies for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), and to continue maturing our platform of novel regenerative therapies for a broad array of rare and underserved diseases.”
Earlier this year, Secretome landed $30 million in Series A funding from RA Capital Management, the round’s sole investor, to advance STM-01 toward pivotal Phase 2 and Phase 3 development in Duchenne muscular dystrophy, an indication with few disease-modifying therapies. Founded in Baltimore in 2018, Secretome moved its headquarters to Plano in 2023. The company also maintains a presence at BioLabs at Pegasus Park in Dallas.
A Sarepta veteran takes the CMO seat
Singh has more than 30 years of experience in clinical development, regulatory strategy and rare disease drug development. Most recently, he led clinical development at Sarepta Therapeutics, where he directed programs for innovative therapies. Previously, he held positions of increasing responsibility in cell and gene therapy development at Sanofi/Genzyme.
Building commercial infrastructure
Chapman will build the commercial and operational infrastructure to support Secretome’s development programs as the company grows. With more than three decades of leadership experience in the U.S. and Europe, Chapman has expertise in commercial strategy, market access, launching products and organizational buildout. He has held senior executive and commercial roles at Zambon USA, Agios Pharmaceuticals, AMAG/COVIS, Reata Pharmaceuticals, Boehringer Ingelheim and Pfizer.
Chapman has been a part of more than 20 product launches that include rare diseases, hematology, pulmonary, cardiovascular, neurology and other specialty therapeutic areas. He also has expertise in business development, alliance management and government affairs.
Two decades in the DMD ecosystem
Lucas has more than 20 years of biotechnology experience spanning medical affairs, scientific communications, CMC development and stakeholder engagement. Previously, Lucas has held leadership positions at Sarepta Therapeutics, Biogen Idec, Cardinal Health and Biotech Primer. Her work in the DMD ecosystem includes scientific education, medical affairs leadership and engagement with healthcare providers, researchers and patient advocacy organizations. She worked on the development and launch of four products.
Finance, HR and corporate planning
Loeffler will guide financial operations, corporate planning, human resources, accounting and administrative infrastructure for Secretome. With more than two decades of experience in biopharma finance and accounting leadership, she has experience with several capital raises, an IPO, a reverse merger and SEC reporting. Previously, she held senior finance leadership roles at Reata Pharmaceuticals and Reneo Pharmaceuticals (now OnKure Therapeutics), and began her career in public accounting at Ernst & Young.
Smith moves to development
In addition to these appointments, Smith has transitioned into the role of Chief Development Officer. As chief development officer, Smith will lead Secretome’s regenerative cell therapy pipeline in cardioimmunology. She directed the company’s first-in-human study of STM-01 as chief medical officer. With extensive biotechnology and regenerative medicine experience, she previously served in leadership roles at SQZ Biotechnologies, Viracta Therapeutics, Atara Biotherapeutics, Gilead Sciences and Amgen. Her expertise spans clinical development, inflammation, cardiovascular disease, rare diseases and advanced cell therapies.
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