Caliber Associates Fills Chief Medical Officer Post for Palisade Bio
October 31, 2023 – San Diego, CA- based Caliber Associates assisted in the recruitment of Mitchell Jones as the chief medical officer of Palisade Bio, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company advancing therapies for acute and chronic gastrointestinal complications. “We are delighted to welcome Mitch to Palisade Bio as our chief medical officer,” said J.D. Finley, CEO of Palisade Bio. “His extensive experience in the GI space and demonstrated skill at launching and directing program strategy from early development through late-stage clinical studies or monetization will be instrumental as we move forward with our newly expanded GI-focused pipeline. His leadership and background in translational and clinical research related to locally acting therapeutics for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease positions him as a valuable addition to the Palisade team.”
Dr. Jones has a track record of developing oral biotherapeutics and locally acting immunomodulating therapeutics designed to act locally within the gastrointestinal tract, including for inflammatory bowel disease. Throughout his career, he has established a reputation for developing technologies and implementing strategies to de-risk programs from the translational through the clinical development arc. Dr. Jones has also monetized, through sale or going public, several of the assets he has developed.
Dr. Jones most recently served as vice president of corporate development and strategy at Chemomab Therapeutics, a Nasdaq-listed clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of innovative therapeutics for fibrotic and inflammatory diseases with high unmet need. In this role, he was responsible for spearheading corporate development and strategy, including guiding program development and company strategy, evaluating and illustrating differentiation in the competitive landscape, directing external collaborations and strategic partnerships, supporting financings and evaluating potential mergers or acquisitions.
Prior to that, Dr. Jones served as VP of clinical discovery and development at Nasdaq-listed Finch Therapeutics, where he contributed to a successful IPO and helped oversee the early clinical development of novel therapeutics for treating IBD, chronic hepatitis B virus infection, and immunotherapy in solid tumors. Additionally, he served as VP of innovation and clinical translational development at Nasdaq-listed Biora Therapeutics, formerly known as Progenity, where he developed and implemented a strategic roadmap encompassing all aspects of the business while contributing to both a $125 million venture financing and the company’s subsequent IPO. During his tenure at Biora, he also served as VP of translational and clinical development where he built the GI therapeutics division.
Additionally, Dr. Jones played an instrumental role as head of research & development (CMO/CSO) and founder of Interface Therapeutics where he developed a novel sampling platform that used multi-omics analysis of samples from remote sections of GI tract to discover and develop locally acting therapeutics including for IBD. Dr. Jones began his career as the founder of Micropharma, serving as head of research & development (CMO/CSO) where he discovered, developed, and implemented clinical drug development programs, including all phases of clinical development, for microbiome-based therapeutics for metabolic and inflammatory disease.
Related: Caliber Associates Places CEO for Valitor Inc.
“This is truly an exciting time for Palisade Bio,” Dr. Jones said. “Patients with IBD have treatment options with low clinical response rates, side effects, and tolerability issues. I believe our recently acquired license to the assets of Giiant Pharma provides Palisade Bio with the potential to offer significantly new treatment options that could have a positive impact on the quality of life for patients living with IBD.”
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Headquartered in Carlsbad, CA, Palisade Bio is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapeutics that protect the integrity of the intestinal barrier. The company utilizes over three decades of research and established science that links the role of intestinal barrier biology with human disease to advance novel therapeutics that target and improve the integrity of the intestinal barrier.
Life Sciences Specialists
Caliber Associates, founded in 1988, is focused exclusively on the life sciences sector. The firm has partnered with over 175 leading companies and has completed upwards of 800 searches, placing strategic leaders with broad therapeutic and functional reach. The firm has offices in San Diego, Chicago, and Portland, OR. Among the roles Caliber Associates has recently filled include senior vice president, clinical development at Inovio Pharmaceuticals and chief medical officer of Coherus BioSciences.
Steve Hochberg is CEO of Caliber Associates. He focuses on recruiting CEOs, board members, C-level, and strategic teams for emerging life science companies and global biopharmaceutical companies. Mr. Hochberg has assembled a small team of highly experienced, results driven search professionals. Prior to his search career, he held strategic human resources roles with Rhône-Poulenc Rorer, FMC Corp., and Shell Oil Co.
Related: Caliber Associates Recruits Chief Medical Officer for Atreca Inc.
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor; Lily Fauver, Senior Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media
