ExpressionEdits welcomes Paul Bolno as new chair

ExpressionEdits has welcomed Paul Bolno as independent director and chairperson of the company’s board of directors.

Based at the Minerva Building on Babraham Research Campus, ExpressionEdits was founded in 2021 by Dr Kärt Tomberg, Professor Allan Bradley and Dr Liliana Antunes as a spin-out from Prof Bradley’s laboratory.

The biotechnology company, which raised $13m in May 2024, is leveraging AI-driven insights and proprietary intronization technology to enhance protein expression. Introns and exons are nucleotide sequences within a gene: introns can be considered as intervening sequences in a gene.

Using ExpressionEdits’ Genetic Syntax Engine, this AI-based intronization technology enables the expression of previously unattainable proteins and supports gene therapy optimisation, improving potency and precision.

“At ExpressionEdits, we're revolutionizing gene expression by putting introns back where they belong, resulting in significant improvements in production,” says Dr Kärt Tomberg, CEO and co-founder, ExpressionEdits. “Our platform empowers precise decisions on which introns to use, where to place them, and how many, unlocking unprecedented levels of protein expression. Our mission is to be the pioneers in making protein therapeutics readily available and accessible to patients.”

Dr Bolno brings over two decades of leadership experience in the life sciences industry to the board. During his tenure as president and CEO, he grew Wave into a leading RNA medicines company. Prior to joining Wave, Dr Bolno held key leadership roles at GlaxoSmithKline.

“I’m delighted to welcome Dr Paul Bolno as chair of our board,” said CEO Dr Tomberg. “His experience in drug development, business strategy, and company building will be instrumental as we translate our innovative intronization technology into novel therapeutics that address key production challenges and unlock previously infeasible opportunities.”

“I am honored to have the opportunity to work with Dr Tomberg and the ExpressionEdits team to help realise their potential,” said Dr Bolno. “The proprietary Genetic Syntax Engine has incredible capabilities beyond protein-based therapeutics, including in the field of gene therapies.

“For gene therapy, ExpressionEdits has the potential to boost potency and precision by creating in-cDNAs with optimal sites and introns, leading to increased protein production without altering core designs. I’m very excited about the future of this platform to solve big challenges in genetic medicines.”