What Happened?
New York, NY-based Syntimmune Appointed Laurence Blumberg as Founder & Chief Operating Officer
About the Company
Syntimmune approaches areas of high unmet medical need in a unique way. Instead of searching for novel, unproven disease biology, Syntimmune focuses on areas of science that are well understood and extensively researched. We seek new treatments that build on these areas of scientific consensus and broad applicability. In the case of our lead drug candidate, SYNT001, both the cellular pathway and the specific molecular target have been studied extensively for more than 25 years, spearheaded by the groundbreaking research of the scientific team behind Syntimmune. Building on proven areas of science enables Syntimmune to advance its drug candidates swiftly and predictably. The result is a significantly derisked approach to new drug development. More importantly, we believe our approach speeds approval of medicines for patients in areas where existing treatments involve inconvenience, dangerous side effects, or poor efficacy. In an industry that often places a premium on novelty, Syntimmune understands that creating real value comes from helping patients who are suffering with diseases for which current treatments are inadequate or nonexistent.
About the Person
Laurence (Laur) has extensive experience in the business of medicine, as an entrepreneur, operating executive and as an investor. He is currently the Chief Operating Officer of Syntimmune Inc, which he co-founded with his brother Richard Blumberg, M.D. in late 2013. Immediately prior to this, Laur was Senior Vice President, Project Management at Kadmon Corporation, responsible for leading cross-functional and cross-regional activities with respect to integration and coordination of new product development activities. He also led business development at the time of the company’s founding in 2009. Prior to Kadmon, Laur co-founded in 1998, also with his brother Richard, and served on the board of directors of Syntonix Pharmaceuticals through its sale to Biogen-Idec in 2007. Syntonix has formed the basis of the Hemophilia program at Biogen-Idec which received regulatory approvals in 2014. From 1999-2007, Laur was Managing Member of Blumberg Capital Management, a life science and healthcare investment partnership and prior to that Laur was a Vice President in Equity Research biotechnology and medical devices for Alliance Capital from 1994-1999. In his earlier career he served in associate level roles in venture capital and public equity and was a co-founder of Cambridge Heart, a medical diagnostic company. Laur also serves, since the first half of 2013, as an Entrepreneur in Residence at Columbia Business School. Finally, Laur received a B.A. from Brandeis University in 1983, magna cum laude, with highest honors in physics, an M.D. from Temple University School of Medicine in 1987, and an Executive M.B.A. from Columbia University School of Business in 1994. He completed an Internship in Surgery at Abington Memorial Hospital and subsequently received Otolaryngology training at Geisinger Medical Center.
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