Translate Bio (TBIO) Announces Executive Leadership Appointments

Appointment of Frank DeRosa, Ph.D. to Chief Technology Officer, and transition of Michael Heartlein, Ph.D. to Executive Vice President and Founder --

-- Appointment of Paul Burgess to Chief Operating Officer --

LEXINGTON, Mass., Dec. 12, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Translate Bio, Inc. (Nasdaq: TBIO), a clinical-stage messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics company developing a new class of potentially transformative medicines to treat diseases caused by protein or gene dysfunction, today announced two executive appointments supporting the Company’s continued growth and leadership in the development of mRNA therapeutics. Frank DeRosa, Ph.D. has been appointed chief technology officer. The Company’s scientific founder and current chief technology officer, Michael Heartlein, Ph.D. will transition to the newly created role of executive vice president and founder. In addition, Paul Burgess will assume the new role of chief operating officer, overseeing both operations and legal functions for the Company. Mr. Burgess will continue to serve as the Company’s chief legal officer.

“Dr. Heartlein pioneered the development of platform technologies in the genetic medicine field, and his scientific vision for using mRNA as a therapeutic is at the center of what we do at Translate Bio,” said Ronald Renaud, chief executive officer, Translate Bio. “Mike and Frank have been a dynamic and effective team since the founding of the MRT platform over 10 years ago. The significant expertise gained over this time has advanced the mRNA therapeutics field and enabled the proprietary developments that are key to our technology. This know-how will continue to be at the foundation of our progress as Frank takes on this leadership role at an exciting time of growth for the Company, and we are grateful to have Mike’s continued guidance and expertise as we move forward.”

Renaud continued, “Paul’s contributions and leadership across various areas of our business enable him to step into this broader role to oversee the build-out of key operations to support the Company’s continued growth.”

Frank DeRosa joined Translate Bio in 2016 and prior to being appointed chief technology officer he served as senior vice president of platform technology. He joined Translate Bio from the mRNA therapeutics platform (MRT) team at Shire which he joined in 2009, most recently serving as senior director of preclinical research and process development. He has played a critical role in the creation, development, application and expansion of Translate Bio’s MRT platform including in vivo applications, delivery technology, and next-generation nucleic acid strategies as well as new manufacturing processes through to GMP stage. Previously, he worked at Enzon Pharmaceuticals developing polymer and lipid nanoparticle-based delivery systems for locked nucleic acid (LNA) antisense technology. Frank also held roles at Takasago International Corporation and the National Cancer Institute (NIH) focused on small molecule library synthesis and polymer-drug conjugate analogues, respectively. He is a co-inventor on 50 issued patents and 75 additional pending patent applications. In addition, he is a co-author on 18 scientific publications. Frank received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Paul Burgess joined Translate Bio in 2015 serving most recently as chief legal officer, a role he has held since 2018. He has over 20 years of experience in the biotech and pharmaceutical industry, with expertise in corporate law, licensing and intellectual property. Prior to joining the Translate Bio team, Paul held senior legal roles at Scholar Rock, Civitas Therapeutics and BIND Therapeutics. He also worked as in-house counsel at Johnson & Johnson, Logical Therapeutics and Transform Pharmaceuticals. Prior to becoming a lawyer, Paul worked as a scientist at Genetics Institute. He received his J.D. from Northeastern University, M.S. in pharmacology from Northeastern University and B.S. in biology from Merrimack College.

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