Martinsried (Munich), Germany, October 31, 2024 - Secarna Pharmaceuticals GmbH & Co. KG, a company redefining the discovery and development of best-in-class oligonucleotide therapeutics today announced the promotion of Konstantin Petropoulos, PhD, MBA, to Chief Executive Officer.  He has served as the Company’s Chief Business Officer since June 2023.  Alexander Gebauer, MD, PhD, is stepping down with immediate effect to focus his efforts on another company, Galimedix Therapeutics, that he has co-founded and is leading. He will continue to support Dr. Petropoulos in his new role to ensure a smooth transition. 

“I am excited to take on this new role at Secarna,” said Konstantin Petropoulos. “I joined Secarna because of my strong belief in the Company’s oligonucleotide technology platform and its potential to bring groundbreaking therapies to patients.  My enthusiasm has grown as I’ve seen our partnered programs advance into the clinic and as we produce highly differentiated proprietary preclinical projects. I want to express my deep gratitude for Alexander’s success in growing our platform and progressing our lead program SECN-15, as well as his dedication and tireless energy in helping us to grow and bringing us to where we are today.  I very much look forward to leading Secarna in its next stage, as we deliver best-in-class oligonucleotide therapeutics that offer the possibility of transforming untreatable conditions into treatable ones and profoundly changing the future of medicine.”

“I have worked very closely with Konstantin since he joined Secarna, and he has been highly successful in helping to drive the business,” said Alexander Gebauer. “With my responsibilities increasing elsewhere, it is the right time to hand over the reins.  Konstantin is highly respected by our partners, customers and the Secarna team, and I am convinced Konstantin has the ability to grow Secarna’s business and advance the pipeline. I look forward to continuing to serve as an advisor and am enthusiastic about the Company’s future.”

Konstantin Petropoulos joined Secarna as CBO in June 2023. He previously served as CEO of AMW GmbH. Prior to that, he held senior management positions in business development as well as commercialization at several biotech and pharma companies, including Leukocare AG, Bayer AG and MorphoSys AG. Konstantin has strong industry experience and a solid track record of growing and expanding businesses. He has been responsible for major business development deals, including licensing/co-development agreements and strategic alliances, and brings extensive knowledge of portfolio strategy development, marketing and sales.

Konstantin has a PhD in oncology from the Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany and an MBA from the University of Applied Sciences for Economics and Management. 

About Secarna Pharmaceuticals

Secarna Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company redefining the discovery and development of best-in-class oligonucleotide therapeutics addressing high unmet medical needs in immuno-oncology and immunology, as well as viral, neurodegenerative and cardiometabolic diseases. Secarna’s mission is to maximize the performance and output of OligoCreator, its proprietary oligonucleotide discovery and development platform, to generate highly specific, safe, and efficacious best-in-class therapeutics. With over 20 discovery and development programs, including both proprietary pipeline projects and partnered programs, Secarna focuses on targets in indications where oligonucleotide-based approaches have clear potential benefits over other therapeutic modalities. www.secarna.com