Abivax appoints Jean-Marc Steens as chief medical officer

French biotech company Abivax (Euronext Paris: ABVX) has appointed Jean-Marc Steens as chief medical officer.

Dr Steens joins with three decades of experience on biopharma, and has worked primarily at GlaxoSmithKline (LSE: GSK), where he spent 20 years. Since 2013 he has been a consultant to various biopharma companies including Novartis (NOVN: VX) and is a member of the HIV advisory boards and steering committees of organizations such as the WHO and the National Institutes of Health.

Hartmut Ehrlich, chief executive of Abivax, said: "I am delighted to welcome Jean Marc to Abivax's senior leadership team. His broad experience in the field of anti-viral drugs and vaccines, developed through decades of international leadership roles at GSK and ViiV, will be invaluable for the ongoing development of Abivax's first-in-class clinical-stage product candidates ABX464 (HIV/AIDS) and ABX 203 (chronic hepatitis B), and to our pipeline of preclinical anti-viral compounds."