Gyroscope Therapeutics Holdings plc, a clinical-stage gene therapy company focused on diseases of the eye, today announced the appointment of biotech industry veteran Anthony (Tony) Adamis, M.D., to the Gyroscope Board of Directors, effective immediately. Dr. Adamis most recently served as Senior Vice President of Development Innovation at Genentech/Roche and brings more than 30 years of industry research and development experience to the role.
With his deep research and industry expertise, Dr. Adamis is best known for co-discovering the central role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in ocular vascular disease, including age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic retinopathy. He has guided the development of 20 medicines in global clinical trials involving more than 25,000 patients. These development programmes led to 24 approvals by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) across various indications.
“As an ophthalmologist, Tony has seen first-hand the devastating impact of vision loss on people’s lives, and through his research, he helped pioneer a new field of medicines for people with wet AMD,” said Khurem Farooq, Chief Executive Officer. “Tony’s expertise as a physician, industry executive and clinical researcher will be invaluable to us as we work to advance gene therapies for people with dry AMD who currently have no approved medicines. We are very excited to welcome him to the Gyroscope team.”
Dr. Adamis received his medical degree with honours from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. He completed his ophthalmology residency at the University of Michigan and his fellowship at Harvard. In 2000, Dr. Adamis co-founded Eyetech Pharmaceuticals, which developed and obtained FDA approval for the first anti-VEGF medicine in ophthalmology. With the introduction of anti-VEGF drugs, the rates of legal blindness from neovascular AMD and diabetic eye disease have decreased by half globally. Dr. Adamis also recently joined the board of directors of RD Funds, the venture arm of the Foundation Fighting Blindness.
About Gyroscope: Vision for Life
Gyroscope Therapeutics is a clinical-stage gene therapy company developing gene therapy beyond rare disease to treat diseases of the eye that cause vision loss and blindness. Our lead investigational gene therapy, GT005, is currently being evaluated in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of geographic atrophy (GA) secondary to age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness. GT005 has received Fast Track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of people with GA.
Supported by leading life sciences investors and biopharmaceutical companies, Gyroscope has built a global organisation combining discovery, research, drug development, a manufacturing platform and surgical delivery capabilities. Headquartered in London with locations in Philadelphia and San Francisco, our mission is to preserve sight and fight the devastating impact of blindness.
For more information visit: https://www.gyroscopetx.com/ and follow us on Twitter (@GyroscopeTx) and on LinkedIn.