Mesoblast is farewelling two of its longest-serving and most technically experienced directors as the cell therapy company reshapes its board for what it calls the next phase of commercial delivery and growth.
William Burns, who joined the board in 2014, will retire at the company's 2026 Annual General Meeting after 12 years as a director. Jane Bell AM will take over as Chair of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee. She has shared that role with Mr Burns as joint chair since April this year. The board credited Mr Burns with contributing to the company's strategic direction and corporate governance.
Dr Philip Krause, a director since 2022, will also step down. Dr Krause joined Mesoblast after a long career at the US Food and Drug Administration and has provided the company with regulatory and clinical development expertise as both a director and a consultant. The board acknowledged his significant contribution to the work that led to Ryoncil's FDA approval.
Ryoncil is approved in the United States for steroid-refractory acute graft-versus-host disease in children aged two months and older. It is the first mesenchymal stromal cell therapy to receive FDA approval.
Chair Philip Facchina said the changes reflect the company's move from development to sales. "On behalf of the Board, I wish to thank Mr Burns for his broad contributions spanning more than a decade and Dr Krause for his significant contribution to Mesoblast as a director. The Company is now a revenue-generating commercial enterprise following the successful launch of RYONCIL in the United States. In line with this, we plan to recruit and appoint new directors with U.S. and global commercial expertise in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors."
The company described the departures as rotational changes and retirements. It repeated its plan to add directors with global commercial experience in the biopharmaceutical sector but did not name any candidates or give a timeline.
Mesoblast is developing Ryoncil for further inflammatory conditions, including steroid-refractory acute graft-versus-host disease in adults and biologic-resistant inflammatory bowel disease. Its second platform product, rexlemestrocel L, is being developed for heart failure and chronic low back pain. The company has commercial partnerships in Japan, Europe and China.