Codiak BioSciences Appoints Lini Pandite, MBChB, MBA to Board of Directors

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Codiak BioSciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: CDAK), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on pioneering the development of exosome-based therapeutics as a new class of medicines, announced today it has appointed Lini Pandite, MBChB, MBA to its board of directors. As a board-certified oncologist and current Chief Medical Officer at Shattuck Labs, Dr. Pandite brings extensive expertise in oncology drug development and clinical application, diversifying the breadth of expertise represented on the board.

“Lini’s experience will be highly relevant and complementary on our board, as she has led development of numerous novel oncology medicines over the course of her industry career and treated patients for more than a decade,” said Douglas E. Williams, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer, Codiak BioSciences. “We have assembled a highly collaborative board, with a well-diversified configuration of expertise that is commensurate with our trajectory as we work to advance our current clinical programs, usher additional candidates into the clinic and demonstrate the broad therapeutic potential of engineered exosomes as revolutionary biologic medicines.”

During her tenure at Shattuck Labs, Dr. Pandite has guided the advancement of two therapeutic candidates into the clinic in less than three years. She has also contributed to the development and implementation of the overall corporate, financing, and business development strategies, including a successful IPO. Prior to joining Shattuck Labs, Dr. Pandite served as Senior Vice President, Head of Clinical Development at Adaptimmune. She also spent several years with GlaxoSmithKline culminating in her tenure as Vice President, Head Unit Physician for Oncology R&D. Her broad oncology drug development expertise spans early-to-late phase development from pre-IND through marketing authorization and commercialization. In addition, Dr. Pandite practiced medicine in both the United Kingdom and the United States and is board certified in hematology and oncology. She was an attending physician at Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center/Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, and held academic appointments at Harvard University and the University of Miami. Dr. Pandite received an MBChB from The University of Liverpool, England, and an MBA from Duke University.

“There has been growing excitement in the scientific community for the potential of exosomes to deliver targeted therapeutics, particularly in historically difficult-to-treat cancers,” said Dr. Pandite. “Codiak is at the forefront in the development of engineered exosomes with its versatile technology platform and oncology candidates in the pipeline. I look forward to joining the board as the company seeks to bring these novel therapies to patients.”

About Codiak BioSciences
Codiak is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on pioneering the development of exosome-based therapeutics, a new class of medicines with the potential to transform the treatment of a wide spectrum of diseases with high unmet medical need. By leveraging the biology of exosomes as natural intercellular transfer mechanisms, Codiak has developed its proprietary engEx™ Platform to expand upon the innate properties of exosomes to design, engineer and manufacture novel exosome therapeutic candidates. Codiak has utilized its engEx Platform to generate a deep pipeline of engineered exosomes aimed at treating a broad range of disease areas, spanning oncology, neuro-oncology, neurology, neuromuscular disease and infectious disease.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, among other things, statements concerning the development and therapeutic potential of the Company’s engEx Platform, engEx product candidates and engineered exosomes generally, including future development plans, regulatory filings, data releases and timing with respect thereto. Any forward-looking statements in this press release are based on management’s current expectations of future events and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from those set forth in or implied by such forward-looking statements. For a discussion of these risks and uncertainties, and other important factors, any of which could cause our actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see the section entitled “Risk Factors” in Codiak’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, and in subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as discussions of potential risks, uncertainties and other important factors in Codiak’s subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All information in this press release is current as of the date of this report, and Codiak undertakes no duty to update this information unless required by law. 

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Christopher Taylor
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