8 TWENTYFOURSEVENBIOPHARMA Issue 2 / June 2025 Hovione and Firstgene announce strategic collaboration to advance virus-like particle platform for liver cancer NEWS Veranova, a global leader in the development and manufacturing of specialty and complex active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) for the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors, is pleased to announce the appointment of Elizabeth Rebeil as Global Vice President of Supply Chain and Operational Excellence. Ms. Rebeil brings more than 20 years of experience in supply chain management and continuous improvement within the pharmaceutical, life sciences, and manufacturing industries. Prior to joining Veranova, she served as Vice President of Supply Chain, Procurement, and Customer Service at QuVa Pharma. Her previous roles include Vice President of Global Biologics Supply Chain and Procurement at Recipharm, as well as leadership positions at Catalent, Wave Life Sciences, Shire Pharmaceuticals, and Lonza. Ms. Rebeil is a certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt and holds an MBA from Tecnologico de Monterrey with a focus on Organizational Leadership. She is known for her strategic vision, transformative leadership, and ability to build high-performing teams that deliver measurable results. “Elizabeth’s deep expertise and proven track record in supply chain and operational excellence will be instrumental in helping Veranova achieve greater consistency, efficiency, and scalability across our global operations. We are excited to welcome Elizabeth to the team and look forward to the impact she will make for our customers and patients.” said Mike Riley, Chief Executive Officer of Veranova. Veranova appoints Elizabeth Rebeil as Global Vice President of Supply Chain and Operational Excellence Exclusive licensing and R&D collaboration accelerate the development of a novel gene vector platform for precision gene therapy in Hepatocellular Carcinoma - the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide Hovione, an international integrated pharmaceutical development and manufacturing organization, and Firstgene Life Sciences, a portfolio company of the Swiss incubator Xlife Sciences AG, announced a strategic collaboration to advance Hovione’s proprietary virus-like particle drug delivery platform for the targeted treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC), a therapeutic indication developed by Firstgene. Under the terms of the collaboration, Hovione will grant Firstgene an exclusive license to its proprietary novel targeted Adeno-Associated Virus (AAV)-Like particle technology for the treatment of HCC and will provide preclinical R&D services. The virus-like particle technology will be engineered and functionalized for the specific carcinoma cell type using therapeutically validated AAVs, including a novel primer compound. Hovione will be responsible for molecular engineering, the supply of tailor-made virus-like particles, and the execution of proof-of-concept studies. “We are thrilled to see our new gene vector particle platform adopted by Firstgene and its forward-thinking leadership team,” said Dr. Jean-Luc Herbeaux, Chief Executive Officer of Hovione. “We are proud to advance the development of innovative oncology treatments that address a critical unmet need for precision gene expression at the tissue level. This partnership is a testament to our mission of turning scientific complexity into real-world solutions that truly make a difference for patients.” “Firstgene is proud to highlight its collaboration with Hovione on this groundbreaking project. HCC, the most common liver cancer and a leading cause of cancer-related death, continues to represent a major unmet medical need. The combination of Hovione’s expertise in complex chemistry and particle engineering and the commercialization expertise of Xlife Sciences positions Firstgene well to offer patients potential new safe and effective therapy options”, said Dr. Alexander Zink, Managing Director of Firstgene Life Sciences GmbH.
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