- Seasoned executive leader and physician-scientist brings deep immunology and transplant medicine experience
- Company strengthens executive team as it advances its lead ex vivo donor-organ therapy ALG-115 toward clinical entry
- ALG-115 is designed to transform the treatment of graft rejection in lung transplantation
Hanover, Germany, July 21, 2026 – Allogenetics today announced the appointment of Jeroen Rovers, MD, PhD, as Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Rovers brings more than 20 years of experience in biotechnology and pharmaceutical product development, with deep expertise across hematology, immunology, transplantation, and emerging therapies. He will succeed Prof. Dr. Rainer Blasczyk, who will continue to support the company as a Clinical Advisor moving forward. His appointment comes at a pivotal time as the company advances its lead candidate, ALG-115, an ex vivo donor-organ gene therapy candidate toward clinical evaluation in lung transplants. ALG-115 is designed as a one-time treatment to modify the donor organ before transplantation to prevent donor organ rejection at its source while retaining full immune competence.
“Jeroen is a highly respected clinical development leader with precisely the experience Allogenetics needs at this important inflection point toward clinical translation. His track record and hands-on experience in advancing innovative therapies through proof-of-concept, pivotal development and regulatory interactions will be instrumental as we prepare to bring our lead candidate ALG-115 to lung transplant patients,” said Oliver Ernst, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Allogenetics. “At the same time, I want to express my sincere thanks to Rainer, whose pioneering research and contribution as co-founder laid the scientific foundation for the company.”
“Allogenetics is addressing one of the most important and persistent challenges in organ transplant medicine,” said Dr. Jeroen Rovers, Chief Medical Officer of Allogenetics. “Despite the success of organ transplantation, patients continue to face the burden of lifelong immunosuppression and its associated risks. The company’s approach is compelling because it addresses graft rejection at the level of the donor organ, before transplantation. I am excited to join this exceptional team as we drive the clinical development of ALG-115 in lung transplantation forward to improve graft survival and quality of life for lung transplant patients.”
Dr. Rovers is a seasoned biotech and pharmaceutical executive with extensive experience leading clinical development, regulatory strategy, and medical affairs across multiple therapeutic areas. Most recently, he served as Chief Medical Officer at Mendus, where he led the clinical strategy and operations for multiple cell-based oncology programs, advancing novel therapies through proof-of-concept and pivotal trial preparation. Previously, he was Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President at Kiadis Pharma, where he directed the development of ATIR, a T-cell depleted donor infusion for patients with hematological malignancies undergoing bone marrow transplantation, including the initiation of Phase 2 and pivotal Phase 3 trials and the submission of a marketing authorization dossier to the EMA. Earlier in his career, Dr. Rovers held senior clinical and medical affairs roles at Organon, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals and Biolitec Pharma. He holds an MD and PhD from Leiden University and has authored more than 20 publications in oncology, immunotherapy and photodynamic therapy.
About Allogenetics
Allogenetics’ mission is to enable longer and healthier lives for transplant patients by fine-tuning the balance between immune tolerance and protection. We are advancing an ex vivo gene therapy designed as a one-time treatment to modify the donor organ. Our goal is to reduce and potentially eliminate the need for lifelong immunosuppression and thereby improving graft survival and patient quality of life.
The company’s proprietary technology platform enables a calibrated knockdown of cell-surface antigen presentation (MHC class I and II) to evade graft rejection while retaining full immune competence. Building on compelling proof-of-concept in animal models, we will bring our novel organ-agnostic approach into human clinical trials, starting with lung and kidney grafts. By leveraging our immune-tolerance approach we are building a new path toward addressing life-threatening conditions and the global organ shortage crisis.
For more information, please contact:
Trophic Communications
Janet Tait or Stephanie May
Tel: +49 171 185 56 82
Email: allogenetics@trophic.eu
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