Yaqrit strengthens board and senior management ahead of multi-prong clinical push in advanced liver disease

• Ex-Takeda VP Tauhid Ali, Ph.D., with broad leadership and drug development experience becomes Board Director
• Seasoned regulatory strategist Darren Rubin becomes VP, Amalive, heading development of the ammonia scavenger OPA, Yaqrit’s phase 3 treatment for hepatic encephalopathy
• Ex-J&J senior medtech director Sarah van Hellenberg Hubar-Fisher joins as VP Business Development leading commercial development of Yaqrit’s medical device assets

LONDON, Feb. 21, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Yaqrit, a late clinical-stage clinical company developing lifesaving treatments for advanced liver diseases, announced today the appointment of a series of key senior board and management team positions as part of the implementation of its clinical development and commercialization strategy.

“I am delighted to announce the appointment of these senior personnel to the Yaqrit team as the company advances its late-stage pharma and medtech assets,” said Troels Jordansen, Chief Executive Officer of Yaqrit. “Our goal is to develop each of our assets into an effective treatment within advanced liver disease. With these appointments Yaqrit bolsters corporate functions while also retaining focus on each of its distinct products to deliver the clinical product that patients need.”

“Tauhid, Darren, and Sarah show the changing face of Yaqrit,” added Rajiv Jalan, Yaqrit’s Founder and Chief Medical Officer. “Their deep international experience, know-how and networks across US, Asia and European pharma and medtech will be crucial in moving Yaqrit’s assets through the clinical and commercial process.”

As a member of Yaqrit’s board, Tauhid Ali, Ph.D., brings a wealth of experience and connections in project and company building. At Takeda, he served as Head of Search and Translational Science (Rare Diseases) and was the founding head of spin-out-creating TAKcelerator^TM. Previously, he contributed to asset-building vehicles such as Cambrian Biopharma and co-founded Oak Hill Bio. “I am thrilled to join Yaqrit’s board at this time,” said Tauhid Ali. “The company has assembled a team that can turn proven technology into treatments. This is a pivotal moment for Yaqrit.”

As VP Amalive, Darren Rubin will head Yaqrit’s subsidiary taking its recently-acquired phase 3-ready asset, ornithine phenylacetate through development and commercial stages. With a strong background in product development, regulatory approvals and orphan drugs, Darren will also head Innovation Strategy for the company.

Sarah Hubar-Fisher will be Yaqrit’s VP of Business Development with particular responsibility for the two medical device assets entering registrational trials in 2025. Her 20 years at Johnson & Johnson/Janssen spanned executive and management positions, culminating in her role as Head of Strategic Finance, Global Public Health.

Contact Company

Troels Jordansen, CEO

Email: Troels@Yaqrit.com

Tel: +31 6 1834 5326

Contact Investors

Mary-Ann Chang

Email: Mary-Ann@Yaqrit.com

Tel: +44 7483 284 853

About Yaqrit

Yaqrit is a clinical-stage company discovering and developing innovative treatments for patients with advanced liver disease at high risk of hospitalization and death. Yaqrit’s pipeline includes three novel therapeutics at phase 2-3 of development and two medical devices providing acute and chronic treatments for advanced cirrhosis and acute-on-chronic liver failure where there is an urgent need for more effective treatments. More information is available at www.Yaqrit.com

About Decompensated Cirrhosis

In over 10 million patients worldwide per year, liver cirrhosis progresses from an asymptomatic (compensated) form to the decompensated form at which point the liver can no longer undertake its usual functions. As a result, levels of ammonia in the blood can increase and have a toxic impact on the brain, causing hepatic encephalopathy. Patients with decompensated cirrhosis also become highly susceptible to bacterial infections because of immune dysfunction. Multiple organ failure becomes more common. These factors lead to increased morbidity with median survival falling from more than 12 years for compensated cirrhosis to about two years for decompensated cirrhosis.

About Hepatic Encephalopathy

Hepatic encephalopathy (HE) is a potentially reversible neurological dysfunction associated with excess ammonia in the blood. As many as 40% of decompensated cirrhosis patients are at risk of developing hepatic encephalopathy, with approximately 200,000 patients hospitalized in the US every year with acute episodes. The recurrence of hepatic encephalopathy is high: a second episode will follow the initial acute event within a year in 40-50% of patients.