Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: IONS) appointed Ludwig Hantson to its board of directors, effective immediately, according to a company statement.

Hantson brings over 30 years of leadership experience in biopharmaceutical and medical device companies. He served as chief executive officer and board member of Alexion from 2017 to 2021, prior to its acquisition by AstraZeneca.

Before joining Alexion, Hantson served as president of Baxter Bioscience, where he led the spin-off of Baxalta and served as its chief executive officer and board member. He previously held senior leadership roles at Novartis across North America and Europe, including chief executive officer of North America, and spent 13 years at Johnson & Johnson. He also served as a director at medical device company Hologic.

Hantson holds a master's degree in physical education and a Ph.D. in motor rehabilitation and physical therapy from the University of Louvain in Belgium.

"Ludwig's biopharma executive leadership experience will be especially meaningful as Ionis prepares for a steady cadence of new commercial launches, including two additional independent launches this year," said Joseph Loscalzo, chairman of the Ionis board of directors.

The company also recently announced the appointment of Peter Reikes to the board and the retirement of two directors, Joseph Wender and Lynne Parshall.

Ionis is a biotechnology company focused on RNA-targeted medicines with marketed drugs and a pipeline in neurology and cardiometabolic disease.