Hunt­ing a cure, Ex-No­var­tis ex­ec Bas­tiano San­na takes the reins at Cam­bridge di­a­betes start­up Sem­ma

A start­up try­ing to de­vel­op a stem cell cure for type 1 di­a­betes has re­cruit­ed for­mer Ma­gen­ta ex­ec­u­tive Bas­tiano San­na — a guy best known for lead­ing the de­vel­op­ment of No­var­tis’ cell-based med­i­cines — to serve as the com­pa­ny’s new CEO.

Cam­bridge-based Sem­ma Ther­a­peu­tics is bring­ing San­na in to re­place its in­ter­im CEO Eliz­a­beth Ston­er. San­na comes di­rect­ly from Ma­gen­ta (an­oth­er start­up de­vel­op­ing stem cell tech), where he was chief op­er­at­ing of­fi­cer. Be­fore that, San­na was an ex­ec­u­tive at No­var­tis’ cell and gene ther­a­py di­vi­sion, over­see­ing the de­vel­op­ment of CAR-T drugs.

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