Andrew Fleischman, MD

Chief Executive Officer

Andrew N. Fleischman, MD is Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Illexcor Therapeutics. Dr. Fleischman is a trained physician and translational scientist who started his pursuit of innovative therapeutic and diagnostic technologies early in his career even before completing residency training. Dr. Fleischman is now a seasoned executive and company builder with an instinct for identifying promising technologies and rapidly advancing complex development programs with large teams. Dr. Fleischman led a team of medicinal chemists to discover new classes of Hemoglobin S polymerization inhibitors, including our lead drug ILX002, and is now leading the IND program and clinical program for ILX002. In addition to leading Illexcor Therapeutics, Dr. Fleischman has founded and built a rapidly growing in vitro diagnostics company CLEU Diagnostics and an innovative RNA-based medicines company AmpedRNA Biosciences. Dr. Fleischman has a broad skill set, ranging from leading translational and clinical sciences to establishing regulatory and intellectual property strategies for the company. Dr. Fleischman has brought in over $25 million in funding in the past 3 years for his companies, including more than $16 million in non-dilutive grants for innovative development programs. Dr. Fleischman looks forward to advancing ILX002 into the clinical and making his mark on patients across the world.

R. Clark Brown, MD

Chief Medical Officer

Clark Brown, MD, PhD is a widely recognized and esteemed leader at the forefront of clinical development of therapeutics for sickle cell disease, and now serves at Chief Medical Officer for Illexcor Therapeutics. Dr. Brown brings extensive expertise from his distinguished career at Emory School of Medicine and Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and, subsequently, in a leadership role at Global Blood Therapeutics and Pfizer, during which he led clinical development of multiple early and late-phase drugs for sickle cell disease, including Oxbryta, GBT601, Etavopivat, Adakaveo, and rivipansel. Dr. Brown has played a key role in transforming the landscape for clinical research for sickle cell disease drug over the past two decades, and directed pivotal clinical trials that have advanced treatment standards. With over 75 original scientific publications, Dr. Brown has made significant contributions to the understanding and treatment of sickle cell disease. As a trusted industry consultant to companies including Global Blood Therapeutics, Imara, Novartis, and Novo Nordisk, Dr. Brown has shaped drug development strategies across the field. His experience spans early-phase development of novel therapeutics, including groundbreaking work on agents targeting vaso-occlusion, hemoglobin modification, and disease-modifying pathways. His comprehensive understanding of therapeutics, from bench to bedside, has made him a sought-after expert in clinical trial design and execution. With training from prestigious institutions including Johns Hopkins Hospital and St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, Dr. Brown continues to drive innovation in sickle cell disease therapeutics through strategic leadership and clinical development, focusing on bringing transformative treatments to patients worldwide.

Martin Safo, PhD

Chief Scientific Officer

Martin K. Safo, Ph.D. is Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Illexcor Therapeutics. Dr. Safo also directs the Center for Drug Discovery as a highly distinguished Professor of Medicinal Chemistry at Virginia Commonwealth University. Dr. Safo is a prolific scientist, with more than 160 published original research papers and 17 issued drug patents. Dr. Safo is a preeminent international leader in the discovery of drugs for sickle cell disease, having spent three decades in the pursuit of highly effective oral drugs to modify mutant Hemoglobin S. Along with his mentor the late Professor Donald Abraham, Dr. Safo’s pioneering work on fundamental approaches to allosteric modification of hemoglobins led to a new era for the discovery of Hemoglobin S polymerization inhibitors. This work was the basis for several clinical-stage drug candidates, including RSR-13 which was evaluated as a Phase 3 anti-cancer agent by Allos Therapeutics and Aes-103, an oral drug for sickle cell disease that was acquired by Baxter in 2014. As the culmination of three decades of scientific pursuit, ILX002 is by far the most promising drug candidate discovered by Dr. Safo, and he looks forward to bringing this therapy to patients in the US and throughout the world.