OncoNano Medicine Announces Promotion of Kartik Krishnan, MD, PhD, to President and Head of Research & Development

By: OncoNano Medicine, Inc. via Business Wire

November 06, 2023 at 09:00 AM EST

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Accomplished oncology research scientist and drug developer, Dr. Krishnan will oversee all research and development activities at OncoNano

OncoNano Medicine, Inc. today announced that Kartik Krishnan, M.D., Ph.D., has been promoted to the new role of President and Head of Research and Development. He has served as Chief Medical Officer since 2022. Dr. Krishnan will continue to report to Chief Executive Officer Martin Driscoll and will lead all the research and development activities at the company, including basic discovery science, translational medicine and clinical development efforts.

“Kartik has made significant contributions since joining OncoNano. His deep knowledge of oncology drug research and his many years of immuno-oncology clinical development experience has allowed us to accelerate our lead oncology therapeutic into our first human trial,” said Martin Driscoll, Chief Executive Officer of OncoNano. “A strong and collaborative leader, Kartik possesses an exceptional grasp of the dynamic oncology research field which will allow us to attract top talent to our research team and leverage our core platform technology to advance novel treatments that benefit cancer patients.”

Dr. Krishnan has more than 20 years of experience with experimental therapeutics in cancer as both an investigator and sponsor. Prior to joining OncoNano, he served as Chief Medical Officer of Arcus Biosciences where he oversaw a portfolio of agents including both biologics and small molecules at multiple phases of development. Dr. Krishnan has spent time in clinical development and pharmacovigilance at multiple biotechnology companies. Before joining the biotechnology industry, Dr. Krishnan held a faculty position in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Arizona, with both clinical and primary research responsibilities. Dr. Krishnan received his B.A. in History (with Distinction) from the University of Virginia. He completed his M.D. and Ph.D. in Cellular, Molecular and Biophysical Studies at Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons.

“I joined OncoNano because I felt its pH-sensitive polymeric micelle technology has the potential to disrupt cancer treatment paradigms and provide meaningful benefit to patients,” said Dr. Krishnan. “I am honored to transition to this expanded position and look forward to working with this exceptional team and lead the company in this next stage of growth.”

About OncoNano Medicine

OncoNano Medicine is developing a new class of cancer products that utilize principles of molecular cooperativity in their design to exploit pH as a biomarker to diagnose and treat solid tumors with high specificity. Our polymeric micelles are designed to efficiently deliver oncology payloads to the tumor microenvironment for an enhanced therapeutic index. Our product candidates and interventions are designed to help patients across the continuum of cancer care and include solid tumor therapeutics, a platform of immuno-oncology therapeutics that activate and guide the body’s immune system to target cancer, and agents for real-time image guided surgery.

ONM-501, OncoNano’s first therapeutic program, is a next generation dual-activating STING (STimulator of INterferon Genes) agonist that is advancing towards a first in human trial in the fourth quarter of 2023. OncoNano’s second therapeutic development program is ONM-412, the highly potent pro-inflammatory cytokine, interleukin-12 (IL-12), encapsulated in the ON-BOARD™ polymeric micelle system. Additionally, the ON-BOARD™ platform has been used for pegsitacianine, a novel fluorescent nanoprobe that is being studied as a real-time surgical imaging agent for use in multiple cancer surgeries and is advancing towards a pivotal clinical trial to aid in tumor detection of peritoneal carcinomatosis. Pegsitacianine and ONM-501 have been supported by grants received from the Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). Learn more at www.OncoNano.com.