Asif Ali to join Protagonist as CFO

Protagonist Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:PTGX) hired Asif Ali as EVP and CFO. Ali will join in mid-April from Theravance Biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ:TBPH), where he is chief accounting officer. Protagonist is developing peptide therapies for blood and gastrointestinal diseases. Its lead candidate rusfertide, an injectable hepcidin mimetic peptide, is in Phase II and III trials for polycythemia vera and hereditary hemochromatosis.

Avenge Bio Inc. hired Claudio Dansky Ullmann as CMO. Dansky Ullmann was CMO at CARMA Cell Therapies, a subsidiary of MaxCyte Inc. (LSE:MXCT; NASDAQ:MXCT), and SVP, head of clinical development at Infinity Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:INFI). Founded in 2019, Avenge Bio is developing cell-based immunotherapies for solid tumors using its LOCOcyte local dosing platform. The company raised a $45 million series A round in January, co-led by Perceptive Xontogeny Venture Fund and CAM Capital, with participation from sole seed investor Longitude Capital and new investors Rock Springs Capital and Pappas Capital...