Kyowa Kirin North America Appoints Paula Soteropoulos to Board of Directors

BEDMINSTER, N.J., Sept. 27, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Kyowa Kirin, Inc., an affiliate of Kyowa Kirin Co., Ltd. (Kyowa Kirin, TSE: 4151) a global specialty pharmaceutical company, welcomed Paula Soteropoulos, a biopharma industry veteran, as the newest non-executive Director on its North America Board of Directors, effective September 1, 2021.

Soteropoulos brings more than three decades of experience across strategic and operational areas including drug development, global commercialization, manufacturing, new company formation and company building. She currently serves as Executive Chairman for Ensoma and as a member of the Board of Directors of uniQure, Rallybio and Chiesi USA. Soteropoulos previously served as founding CEO and member of the Board of Directors of rare disease therapeutic developer Akcea Therapeutics, where she led the company through its IPO and multiple drug launches. In addition, she held senior positions at Moderna, Inc., where she led key strategic alliances and advanced preclinical programs, and spent more than 20 years at Genzyme Corporation.

"Paula is a tremendously accomplished professional with deep industry experience that is a great match with our current products and pipeline," said Gary Zieziula, President, North America region. "We know that Paula's insights and expertise will undoubtedly bring substantial value toward our ultimate goal of making a profound impact for patients."

In addition to in-depth experience in rare disease, Soteropoulos' career spans a broad range of therapeutic areas including cardiovascular and metabolism, neurology, infectious disease, renal, and transplant and oncology. She also serves on the Advisory Board for the Chemical and Biological Engineering Department of Tufts University.

"I believe my years of experience, especially working within rare diseases, will complement Kyowa Kirin's work to discover and develop novel treatments for hard to treat diseases, where need remains high," said Paula Soteropoulos. "I look forward to joining the North America Board of Directors and working with the entire executive team to navigate a period of rapid growth and opportunity."

About Kyowa Kirin North America
Kyowa Kirin strives to create and deliver novel medicines with life-changing value. As a Japan-based Global Specialty Pharmaceutical Company, we apply cutting-edge science and expertise in antibody research and engineering to address the needs of patients and society across multiple therapeutic areas, including Nephrology, Oncology, Immunology/Allergy and Neurology. Across four global regions – Japan, Asia Pacific, North America and EMEA/International – we are united by our shared values of commitment to life, teamwork/Wa, innovation, and integrity, and a drive to advance innovations that have a profound impact on patients. You can learn more about Kyowa Kirin North America at: https://kkna.kyowakirin.com.

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SOURCE Kyowa Kirin, Inc.