BELMONT, Mass. — Oryon Cell Therapies has appointed Burkhard Blank, M.D., as Chief Medical Officer, bringing in a veteran drug development executive as the company advances its neuron replacement therapy programs for Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.
Dr. Blank joins the clinical-stage biotechnology company with decades of experience across clinical development, regulatory strategy, and medical affairs. Over his career, he has led global development programs from early research through approval, overseeing eight New Drug Application and corresponding Marketing Authorization Application submissions, all of which resulted in approvals.
“Burkhard is a highly accomplished drug developer whose experience spans the full arc of bringing innovative therapies from concept to approval,” said Ron Cohen, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Oryon. “During his tenure as CMO at Acorda Therapeutics, I saw his outstanding strategic, operational and leadership abilities across all aspects of clinical development, regulatory affairs and medical support of commercial launches. The Oryon team is delighted that he is now leading the company’s development of our neuronal replacement therapy for people with Parkinson’s disease.”
Dr. Blank most recently served as Chief Medical Officer and Head of Research and Development at MannKind Corporation, where he led clinical development, regulatory, and biometrics functions. Prior to that, he was Chief Medical Officer at Acorda Therapeutics, overseeing the global Phase 3 program and regulatory approvals of INBRIJA for Parkinson’s disease in the United States and Europe. He also held senior leadership roles at Boehringer Ingelheim, including Chief Medical Officer of its U.S. business, where he managed multiple international development programs and approvals, including Mirapex for Parkinson’s disease.
“I am excited to join Oryon at this important stage in its development,” said Dr. Blank. “The company’s autologous neuron replacement approach represents a potentially transformative strategy for treating Parkinson’s disease by addressing its underlying biology. I find the early clinical and imaging data highly encouraging, and look forward to working with the team to advance this program for Parkinson’s and potentially future programs to address additional neurodegenerative conditions.”
Oryon’s lead therapy is currently being evaluated in an ongoing Phase 1/2a clinical trial studying autologous dopaminergic neuron replacement in patients with Parkinson’s disease. Interim data presented at the AD/PD 2026 International Conference showed improvements in motor function along with neuroimaging findings consistent with restoration of dopaminergic signaling.
