Aardvark Therapeutics Appoints Renowned Biopharma Leaders Roy D. Baynes and Susan E. Graf to its Board of Directors

By: Aardvark Therapeutics, Inc. via Business Wire

January 09, 2025 at 08:06 AM EST

Roy D. Baynes, M.D., Ph.D., was previously Chief Medical Officer and head of clinical development at Merck, where he oversaw the entire clinical portfolio and was the architect of breakthrough medicines such as Keytruda.
Susan E. Graf, RPh, MBA, has more than 25 years’ experience spanning corporate strategy, finance, business development, M&A, and the development and commercialization of biopharmaceuticals.

Aardvark Therapeutics, Inc. (Aardvark), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel, small-molecule therapeutics to activate innate homeostatic pathways for the treatment of metabolic diseases, today announced the appointments of Roy D. Baynes, M.D., Ph.D., and Susan E. Graf, RPh, MBA to its Board of Directors. Dr. Baynes was previously Chief Medical Officer and head of clinical development at Merck. Ms. Graf is currently a senior advisor at Locust Walk Partners and was formerly Chief Executive Officer at Akamara Therapeutics. Both will serve as independent directors.

“We are delighted to welcome these distinguished biopharma leaders to our Board as we advance our pipeline of novel obesity therapies with the goal of transforming metabolic health,” said Tien Lee, M.D., Chief Executive Officer of Aardvark. “As one of the world’s pre-eminent clinical development experts, Roy’s visionary leadership and success driving breakthrough therapies will be invaluable in advancing our potential first-in-class programs targeting unmet needs in rare obesity indications. Likewise, Susan’s deep expertise in biotech leadership, business strategy, and finance constitutes the ideal skill set as we pursue Phase 3 development of our lead product candidate for Prader-Willi Syndrome and drive forward programs for hypothalamic obesity and other obesity indications into later stages of clinical development.”

Roy D. Baynes currently serves as Chief Medical Officer of Eikon Therapeutics. Dr. Baynes was previously Chief Medical Officer and head of clinical development at Merck, where he supervised the entire clinical portfolio in Merck Research Laboratories and was the architect of the development strategy for dozens of important new medicines including Keytruda. Prior to Merck, he held clinical development leadership positions for oncology, respiratory and inflammation at Gilead Sciences and hematology/oncology at Amgen. Before transitioning to industry, Dr. Baynes held academic positions at universities in South Africa and the United States in hematology and oncology, in addition to leading the bone marrow transplantation service at the Karmanos Cancer Institute at Wayne State University in Detroit, where he was professor of medicine and oncology, and the Charles Martin Professor of Cancer Research. He received his degree in medicine and surgery (MB, BCh) from the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, where he also received an MMed (specialist registration) and completed a Ph.D. exploring human iron metabolism.

Susan E. Graf is currently a senior advisor and entrepreneur in residence at Locust Walk Partners, LLC, a global life science transaction firm. Ms. Graf previously served as Chief Executive Officer of biotechnology company Akamara Therapeutics. Prior to Akamara Therapeutics, she was Chief Business Officer and principal financial officer at Epizyme, a biopharmaceutical company. Before Epizyme, she held the position of vice president, corporate development and strategy for NPS Pharma prior its acquisition by Shire in 2015. Earlier in her career, Ms. Graf spent close to two decades at Roche in a number of leadership and executive positions. She currently serves on the Board of Directors and chairs the audit committee of CG Oncology, and serves on the Board of Directors of Kaléo, a privately held pharmaceutical company. Ms. Graf has an M.B.A. from the Stern School of Business at New York University and a B.Pharm. from Purdue University.

Aardvark’s lead product candidate, ARD-101, is an oral investigational drug targeting Bitter Taste Receptors expressed in the gut lumen to suppress hunger. ARD-101 is currently in Phase 3 development for hyperphagia associated with Prader-Willi Syndrome and Aardvark intends to evaluate ARD-101 in a Phase 2 clinical trial for hyperphagia associated with hypothalamic obesity. Aardvark is also developing ARD-201, an anticipated fixed-dose combination of ARD-101 with a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor, for the treatment of obesity and obesity-related conditions.

About Aardvark Therapeutics, Inc.

Aardvark is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel, small-molecule therapeutics to activate innate homeostatic pathways for the treatment of metabolic diseases. Its portfolio of small molecule programs targets biological pathways associated with alleviating hunger. Aardvark’s lead product candidate, ARD-101, targets Bitter Taste Receptors (TAS2Rs) expressed in the gut lumen, inducing secretion of engogenous singaling molecules, including the satiety hormone cholecystokinin (CCK), which in turn activates gut-brain signals to suppress the sensation of hunger. This potential first-in-class oral investigational drug demonstrated favorable clinical activity and was well-tolerated in Phase 2 trials and has entered Phase 3 development for hyperphagia associated with Prader-Willi Syndrome, for which Aardvark has been granted an Orphan Drug Designation. Additionally, Aardvark intends to advance ARD-101 into Phase 2 development for hyperphagia associated with hypothalamic obesity, with a goal of addressing significant unmet needs across both these rare disease indications. Aardvark is also developing ARD-201, which will be a fixed-dose combination of ARD-101 with a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor, with a goal of addressing some of the limitations of currently marketed GLP-1 therapies for the treatment of obesity and obesity-related conditions. For more information, visit aardvarktherapeutics.com.