4 January 2019 - - US-based biotechnology company Fulcrum Therapeutics, which is focused on discovering and developing small molecule therapies to unlock gene control and treat serious genetic diseases, has appointed Bryan E. Stuart as chief operating officer, the company said.

Stuart brings more than 20 years of leadership, strategic and operational experience to Fulcrum.

He most recently served as president and CEO of Yarra Theraputics, a subsidiary of Array Biopharma, focused on developing therapeutics for genetically defined rare diseases.

Previously he was president, then CEO of Kastle Therapeutics, a biopharma company focused on rare disease.

He also served as chief business officer of Civitas Therapeutics (acquired by Acorda) which developed Inbrija to treat Parkinson's Disease. Stuart previously led business development and corporate strategy for both EKR Therapeutics (acquired by Cheisi) and Ovation Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Lundbeck A/S), a company focused on orphan CNS disorders.

Stuart began his career as a healthcare investment banker at William Blair and company. He holds an MBA from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University and a B.S. with high honors from the University of Illinois.

Fulcrum Therapeutics is a biotechnology company developing new medicines to deliver a new future to patients and their families by transforming gene regulation in disease. Fulcrum's therapies are based on modulating gene regulation via control of genetic on and off switches of disease genes.

The company, headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., has raised USD 135m from two rounds of funding. Investors include Foresite Capital, Fidelity Management and Research Company, 6 Dimensions Capital, Casdin Capital, Sanofi Ventures, Section 32, NS Investments, entities affiliated with Leerink Partners and undisclosed institutional investors, as well as founding investor Third Rock Ventures.

Fulcrum was launched in 2016 and named a "Fierce 15" company later that year.