Coulter Partners secures Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for OxStem

Dr Collinson’s career includes executive leadership and board roles with biopharmaceutical companies in the US and Europe, and as a partner with a life science venture capital firm. He has served on the boards of companies including Affinium Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Debiopharm), Cabrellis Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Pharmion, now part of Celgene), Conforma Therapeutics (acquired by Biogen), Essentialis (acquired by Capnia, now Soleno Therapeutics), GeneOhm Sciences (acquired by Becton Dickinson), NovaCardia (acquired by Merck & Co), Proprius Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Cypress Biosciences) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals.

As a partner with Forward Ventures, Dr Collinson has led investments in several biopharmaceutical companies. Previously, he was Chairman and CEO of Aurora Biosciences (acquired by Vertex Pharmaceuticals). He held senior management positions at GlaxoWellcome (now GlaxoSmithKline) and Baxter International, and was a consultant with The Boston Consulting Group. Dr Collinson received an MBA from Harvard Business School (Fulbright Scholar), a DPhil (PhD) in Physical Chemistry from the University of Oxford and a BSc (First Class Honours) from Durham University.

OxStem Co-Founder, Director and Waynflete Professor of Chemistry at the University of Oxford, Professor Steve Davies, said: “On behalf of the Board, Founders and management team, we warmly welcome Dr Stuart Collinson to OxStem and I thank the team at Coulter Partners for their outstanding professional support in achieving this appointment. Stuart is a highly experienced international business leader who brings significant fundraising, product development, partnering and commercialisation experience. We look forward to working with him to develop transformative medicines for patients suffering from severe degenerative diseases. The Board would like to sincerely thank Dr Michael Stein for his service as the founding CEO and Chairman of OxStem, and we wish him continued success in his future endeavours.”

“I am excited to have the opportunity to lead OxStem, the leader in small-molecule regenerative medicine,” said Stuart Collinson, incoming Chair and Chief Executive Officer of OxStem. “I look forward to working with the OxStem Board, founders, management team and collaborators to translate OxStem’s breakthrough science into first-in-class medicines for patients with serious degenerative diseases.”

About OxStem

OxStem discovers small molecules that activate or re-programme tissue-resident (endogenous) stem and progenitor cells, targeting diseases with significant unmet clinical needs. OxStem’s six research programmes focus on first-in-class therapeutics for haematological malignancies, neurodegenerative disease, retinal disease, cardiovascular disease, inflammation and diabetes.