→ Enthused about the Phase I data for their Covid-19 mRNA vaccine and believing they’ve cracked the cold-storage code in delivering them, CureVac has brought Antony Blanc into the fray as CBO and chief commercial officer. While at GSK from 2009-17, Blanc served in several capacities with GSK Vaccines, including as integration lead when the pharma giant acquired Novartis Vaccines in 2015. Before his time at GSK, Blanc was CBO at Synosia Therapeutics.

→ San Diego protein degradation startup Vividion Therapeutics has made a change at the top with Jeffrey Hatfield taking the helm as CEO, replacing Diego Miralles six months after Roche forked over $135 million to collaborate with Vividion on their small molecule degraders. Hatfield is chairman of the board at miRagen Therapeutics and previously held the CEO job at Zafgen and Vitae Pharmaceuticals. He also had a series of leadership roles at Bristol Myers Squibb from 1996-2004, including SVP, immunology and virology divisions.

→ Rife with turmoil and hit with a barrage of FDA holds as it spiraled into penny-stock territory, Unum Therapeutics hopes a new name — Cogent Biosciences — and a new CEO can turn its fortunes around. Andrew Robbins takes control now and succeeds Chuck Wilson, who founded Unum in 2014.

The cell therapy biotech stumbled out of the gate when it debuted on Nasdaq in 2018 and revealed that 2 of its 9 patients died in one arm of their ACTR087 trial. The FDA would hand down 3 different holds, two for ACTR087 and another for its experimental therapy ACTR707. Adding insult to injury, Unum shed around 60% of its workforce and jettisoned its old pipeline in favor of a new one a few months ago.

→ There’s a change at the top at German rare disease biotech Centogene. Arndt Rolfs decided to step down as CEO, effective Tuesday, and Big Pharma vet Andrin Oswald will replace him starting Dec. 1. Oswald, the delegate for Covid-19 vaccines and immunotherapies for the federal government of Switzerland, recently spent 4 years with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as director of life science industry engagement and partnerships. He was also a business integration exec at GSK and division head of vaccines & diagnostics at Novartis.

→ Growth equity firm General Atlantic has reeled in Brett Zbar as managing director to lead its new life sciences focus. Zbar hops aboard from Foresite Capital where he served as managing director and advised on the boards of companies such as Kinnate Biopharma, ORIC Pharmaceuticals and Signant Health among others. Prior to his role at Foresite, Zbar was a partner at Aisling Capital.

→ Michael Kavanaugh has announced his retirement effective Dec. 1 as CSO, head of research and non-clinical development of CytomX. According to the release, he’s transitioning to an advisory role. Kavanaugh had been with the oncology biotech since 2015 after holding the same titles at Five Prime Therapeutics. VP of oncology research Marcia Belvin, who came to CytomX 2 years ago, has been promoted to SVP, head of research. Belvin previously held multiple positions leading cancer programs and preclinical pipeline teams during 13 years at Genentech and got her start at Exelixis.