PolTREG S.A., a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing cell therapies for a wide range of autoimmune diseases, announces it has appointed Prof. Daniel Shelly, PhD, MBA, into the role of Chief Business Development Officer as of today, to help PolTREG build the strategic, commercial, research and pharmaceutical partnerships that will enable the company to successfully commercialise its strong pipeline of cell therapies for diseases such as Type-1 Diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases like Multiple Sclerosis or ALS Multiple Sclerosis.

I am elated we were able to attract Dan to help us deliver the promise of Treg cell therapies for a wide range of autoimmune diseases. PolTREG has the most comprehensive pipeline of cell therapies for autoimmune diseases, including Type-1 Diabetes and Multiple Sclerosis, and Dan’s arrival will enable us to continue to deliver the milestones that will bring our lead assets closer to market.”

– said Prof. Piotr Trzonkowski, Chief Executive Officer of PolTREG.

Prof. Shelly is an astute veteran of the life science industry, with a deep understanding of biology and the Treg cell therapies that PolTREG is developing. He has a proven track record of closing business development deals for a wide range of biotech companies, including most recently several early-stage evaluation deals for Prescient Therapeutics Ltd., a clinical stage oncology company developing personalised medicine approaches to cancer, using CAR-T technologies. He was Director of Global Business Development and Strategic Partnerships for the global non-profit PATH, where he was the Co-Lead for the COVID-19 task force. He is an adjunct associate professor at the University of Cincinnati, where he teaches biologics discovery, pharmaco-economics and biotech business, publishes in scientific journals, and is a frequently invited speaker/thought leader at international cell therapy conferences. Prof. Shelly has a comprehensive understanding of the clinical development pathway, with direct experience of regulatory submissions, and is skilled in clinical asset research and evaluation and due diligence.

PolTREG boasts the most advanced pipeline for Treg cell therapies in autoimmune disease, with its lead candidate, PTG-007, in mid-stage clinical studies for two indications in T1D and two in MS. For CAR-Tregs, the company expects to start a First-in-Human clinical trial for two neurodegenerative diseases – MS and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) – in early 2025. Complementing PolTREG’s advanced and innovative pipeline is the recent completion of one of Europe’s largest cGMP cell therapy manufacturing facilities. The facility, one of the most advanced of its kind, will have over 2,100 sqm of laboratory space including 15 production lines that will be operational in 2024. The facility can be further expanded to enable delivery of life-improving cell therapies anywhere in Europe within 24 hours.

PolTREG was the first company in the world to administer T-reg therapies to patients and the first to start receiving revenues from its lead product. So far, PolTREG has successfully treated 27 patients with PTG-007 commercially under a hospital exemption program in Poland, where the company is completing its own state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities.