RNAi therapeutics company Alnylam Pharmaceuticals said CEO John Maraganore plans to step down at the end of 2021, handing the reins to Yvonne Greenstreet, currently president and chief operating officer of Alnylam.
Photo: Yvonne Greenstreet, who will become CEO of Alnylam at year-end
Maraganore joined Alnylam in 2002 as the company’s founding CEO and has led the company’s advancement of RNAi therapeutics as a new class of innovative medicines, including four approved medicines marketed in more than 25 countries around the world.
Greenstreet joined Alnylam in 2016 as chief operating officer, adding the title of president in 2020. Maraganore will support the leadership transition in a consulting capacity through March 31, 2022 and will continue to contribute to the company as a member of the company’s Scientific Advisory Board. Effective immediately, Greenstreet has been appointed to the Alnylam board of directors as part of the planned succession.
“My long-standing tenure at Alnylam has comprised a remarkable journey of conquering the challenges of early science to create an entire new frontier of medicine with multiple RNAi therapeutics helping patients around the world,” said John Maraganore, CEO of Alnylam. “I have decided that this is the right time to transition my leadership at year end to focus my next chapter on helping other entrepreneurs and companies advance new frontiers of medicine.”
“There’s no doubt that John is both the architect and the inspiration of Alnylam’s success to this point in the company’s journey,” said Michael Bonney, executive chair of Alnylam. “As we prepare for Alnylam’s continued leadership and execution on our P5x25 business strategy, we are very excited about Yvonne Greenstreet as our future CEO. With a continued commitment to innovation and patients, Yvonne brings enormous experience to grow and scale Alnylam as a leading global biopharmaceutical company.”
Greenstreet has more than 25 years of experience in the biopharmaceutical industry, with executive positions at Pfizer and before that, at GlaxoSmithKline. She is in the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and is a member of the Discovery Council of Harvard Medical School.
“In addition to his achievement – against all odds – of creating a new class of innovative medicines, John has built an industry leading team and culture, that together position Alnylam for continued success,” said Greenstreet. “Indeed, I believe that Alnylam is well on its way toward achieving its P5x25 aspirations of building a top five biotech, and I’m confident that our continued leadership of RNAi therapeutics and commitment to innovation for patients will guide us for the future.”
RNAi (RNA interference) is a natural cellular process of gene silencing. Small interfering RNA (siRNA), the molecules that mediate RNAi and comprise Alnylam’s RNAi therapeutic platform, function upstream of today’s medicines by silencing messenger RNA (mRNA) – the genetic precursors – that encode for disease-causing proteins, thus preventing them from being made. This is approach has the potential to transform the care of patients with genetic and other diseases.
Author: Rare Daily Staff
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