WALTHAM, Mass. — Korsana Biosciences has appointed Matthew Leoni, M.D., as Chief Medical Officer, Gan Wei, Ph.D., as Chief Technical Officer, and Heidi Henson to its Board of Directors.
Henson will also serve as Chair of the board’s Audit Committee.
The biotechnology company said the appointments strengthen its clinical, technical and governance capabilities as it advances KRSA-028, its lead therapeutic candidate for Alzheimer’s disease, toward clinical development.
“We are delighted to welcome Matt, Gan, and Heidi to Korsana as we enter our next phase of growth,” said Jonathan Violin, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Korsana.
Violin said the additions bring experience in building and scaling biotechnology companies and will support the development of KRSA-028 and Korsana’s THETA platform for neurodegenerative diseases.
Korsana continues to expect its previously announced merger with Cyclerion Therapeutics to close in the third quarter of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. Following the transaction, the combined company is expected to operate as Korsana Biosciences and trade on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “KRSA.”
The company expects Phase 1 healthy-volunteer data for KRSA-028 in mid-2027. Interim proof-of-concept data evaluating amyloid plaque clearance in patients with Alzheimer’s disease are anticipated by the end of 2027 or the first quarter of 2028.
Leoni brings more than 20 years of biopharmaceutical clinical development experience. He most recently served as Chief Medical Officer of Merida Biosciences, where he built the company’s development organization and advanced its lead program through investigational new drug clearance and into clinical testing.
Previously, Leoni was Senior Vice President of Development at Cerevel Therapeutics and a member of its founding leadership team. He also held clinical development positions at Otsuka, Novartis, Galderma and Immunomedics.
Leoni earned his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, an M.B.A. in Pharmaceutical Management from Drexel University and a bachelor’s degree in biology from Franklin & Marshall College.
Wei has more than 25 years of experience in biologics manufacturing, process development, commercialization and product lifecycle management. He most recently served as Senior Vice President of Global Technical Operations at Zenas BioPharma.
Wei previously held leadership positions at Voyager Therapeutics and TESARO/GSK, as well as roles at Shire Pharmaceuticals, Eli Lilly and Company and Momenta Pharmaceuticals.
He earned his Ph.D. in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and a bachelor’s degree in biochemical engineering from East China University of Science and Technology.
Henson brings more than 20 years of financial operations experience at public and private biopharmaceutical companies. She currently serves on the boards of Lisata Therapeutics, PepGen and Perspective Therapeutics.
She most recently served as Chief Financial Officer of Pardes Biosciences through its acquisition. She previously held Chief Financial Officer roles at Imbria Pharmaceuticals, Kura Oncology, Wellspring Biosciences and Araxes Pharma.
Henson began her career in auditing at PricewaterhouseCoopers and earned a Bachelor of Accountancy from the University of San Diego.
