TAAV Names Biomanufacturing Innovator Dolores Baksh Chief Executive Officer

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-- Baksh to grow TAAV's synthetic DNA manufacturing business and accelerate access to safer adeno-associated virus (AAV) therapeutics --

SAN SEBASTIAN, Spain, Nov. 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- TAAV Biomanufacturing Solutions, S.L. (TAAV), an independently operated wholly-owned subsidiary of Asklepios BioPharmaceutical, Inc. (AskBio), and a member of the Bayer worldwide group of companies, today announced the appointment of Dolores Baksh, Ph.D. as Chief Executive Officer. Baksh brings a successful 20-year track record of biotechnology R&D, product development and cGMP manufacturing leadership to TAAV, a world-leading synthetic DNA manufacturer.

"Dolores' diverse biotech experience and therapeutic production expertise will immediately contribute to growing TAAV's worldwide synthetic DNA manufacturing business," said Sheila Mikhail, TAAV Board Chair and AskBio Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer. "The Board values her strategic vision and long history of operational execution, which are critical to building product leadership for TAAV-produced doggybone DNA™¹ (dbDNA™) as a safe and highly effective alternative to plasmid DNA."

TAAV's modern facility in San Sebastian, Spain, is specifically designed for the manufacture of high quality dbDNA™ for research, preclinical and clinical grade AAV therapeutics. We believe TAAV's synthetic process will lead to high yields at small scales and shorter manufacturing timelines, facilitating quicker production of AAV and increasing safety by eliminating residual bacterial sequences of plasmid DNA.

"This is an exciting time for TAAV and AAV therapeutics. I look forward to working alongside our exceptional and growing team, to establish TAAV as the global standard for synthetic biotechnology," added Baksh. "I believe TAAV will play a transformative role in increasing the safety and accessibility of AAV therapeutics for those in need around the world."

Baksh joins TAAV from Akron Biomanufacturing where she served as the company's Business Unit Head and Vice President of Commercial Biomanufacturing, leading its growth strategy for the production of cGMP plasmids and gene editing nucleases. She also held various leadership positions at GE Healthcare Life Sciences; GE Venture start-up, Vineti, Inc.; Organogenesis; and others. In these roles, Baksh established innovative cell and gene therapy product development strategies through organic and inorganic approaches, brought to market software to scale and digitize cell manufacturing systems and played a leading role in the approval of the first FDA approved allogeneic cell-based product.

Baksh received her Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering at the University of Toronto. She will split her time between Boston, Massachusetts, and TAAV's manufacturing facility in San Sebastian, Spain.

TAAV Biomanufacturing Solutions, S.L. (TAAV) is a cGMP manufacturer of doggybone DNA™ (dbDNA™), a synthetic DNA material used for adeno associated virus (AAV) gene therapies. The company is an independently operated, wholly owned subsidiary of Asklepios BioPharmaceuticals (AskBio) and, AskBio is an independent, wholly owned subsidiary of Bayer AG. dbDNA™ is manufactured using an enzymatic process and produced under ISO classified production suites following GMP standards for research, clinical and commercial applications of synthetic DNA in AAV therapeutic vectors. Synthetic dbDNA™ is as an alternative to plasmid DNA, commonly used in AAV manufacturing, and leads to higher yields of DNA material. The use of synthetic dbDNA™ material can significantly shorten manufacturing timelines and facilitate faster production of AAV with an increased safety profile by eliminating residual bacterial sequences of plasmid DNA in the AAV product. TAAV was founded in 2019 and became 100% wholly owned by AskBio in 2022. Company headquarters, manufacturing facilities and labs are in San Sebastian, Spain. For more information, go to taav.com.

¹doggybone™, doggybone DNA™ and dbDNA are trademarks of Touchlight Genetics Limited. Technology for making dbDNA™ is licensed from Touchlight IP Ltd. 

TAAV Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements." Any statements contained in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Words such as "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," "will," "intends," "potential," "possible" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding TAAV's manufacturing technology and process. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond TAAV's control. Known risks include, among others: TAAV may not be able to execute on its business plans and goals, including meeting its expected or planned regulatory requirements, its reliance on third-parties, clinical development plans, manufacturing processes and plans, and the production of its product, due to a variety of reasons, including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, possible limitations of company financial and other resources, manufacturing limitations that may not be anticipated or resolved in a timely manner, potential disagreements or other issues with our third-party collaborators and partners, and regulatory, court or agency feedback or decisions, such as feedback and decisions from the United States Food and Drug Administration or the United States Patent and Trademark Office or European drug authorities. Any of the foregoing risks could materially and adversely affect TAAV business and results of operations. You should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. TAAV or its parent companies do not undertake any obligation to publicly update its forward-looking statements based on events or circumstances after the date hereof. 

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