Appointment a Key Role in Expansion Plans

Biologics and Pharmaceuticals CDMO Cobra Biologics has appointed Dr Darrell Sleep as Director of Innovation as part of on-going strategic expansion activities to increase capacity and capability for both the clinical and commercial in-market supply of viral vector and DNA products to Advanced Therapy Medicinal Product (ATMP) developers.

Leading the company’s innovation team, Darrell will work closely with Professor Daniel Smith, the Group’s Chief Scientific Officer (CSO), to streamline process workflows on the site and facilitate timely adoption of pioneering bioprocess solutions. The appointment supports the rapid process development approaches required by Cobra’s advanced therapies customers, essential for cost-effective clinical and commercial manufacturing.

Darrell has 30 years biopharmaceutical experience, with a proven record for leading innovation and product development. His industry experience includes 20 years in management positions where he successfully led a team to develop a new technology platform delivering pre-clinical in vivo proof-of-concept data sets, established techniques to improve therapeutic index and secured the relevant intellectual property to facilitate a number of successful collaborations with major pharma companies.

Dr Darrell Sleep, Director of Innovation Cobra Biologics, said: ‘I am excited to be joining Cobra, and working alongside its expert team at the Keele site. As part of the innovation group, I will be focusing on current and new processes, technologies and equipment, with the aim to further improve time and yields for customers, and to ultimately support them in making advanced therapies more accessible to patients.’