Obsidian Therapeutics
  • About Us
    • Overview
    • Our Vision
    • Management Team
    • Board of Directors
    • Scientific Advisory Board
    • Investors
  • Our Science
    • Overview
    • Our Pipeline
    • cytoDRiVE® PLATFORM
    • Publications
    • Partners
  • Our Lead Clinical Program
    • Overview
    • For Patients
    • Expanded Access Policy
    • OBX-115
  • News
  • Join Our Team
    • Overview
    • Our Culture
    • Testimonials
    • Benefits
    • Job Postings
  • Contact

News

Back to News
Previous
Next
May 23, 2023

Obsidian Therapeutics Announces Dr. Madan Jagasia as Chief Executive Officer and Other Leadership Appointments

Company also adds Dr. Parameswaran Hari as Chief Development Officer and appoints Dr. Matthew Norkunas to Board of Directors

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., May 23, 2023 – Obsidian Therapeutics Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering engineered cell and gene therapies, today announced the appointment of Madan Jagasia, M.D., M.S., as Chief Executive Officer. A highly experienced clinician and researcher with an extensive industry background in the development of tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) treatments for cancer, Dr. Jagasia joins Obsidian as it focuses on the advancement and expansion of its clinical program.

Prior to joining Obsidian, Dr. Jagasia was Executive Vice President, Medical Affairs at Iovance Biotherapeutics, Inc. (“Iovance”), where he was responsible for managing national medical affairs, strategic congress planning, advocacy, strategic alliances and external research collaborations. Before Iovance, he was Chief Medical Officer and Executive Medical Director of Cancer Patient Care Center, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC), where he co-led Translational Research and Interventional Oncology Research Program at VICC. Dr. Jagasia began his career as a faculty member in the Division of Hematology-Oncology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Dr. Jagasia has his M.B.B.S from the GS Medical College & KEM Hospital, an M.S. and a Master of Management in Health Care from Vanderbilt University.

Obsidian has also named Parameswaran Hari, M.D., M.S., as Chief Development Officer. Dr. Hari joins Obsidian from Iovance, where he was Senior Vice President, Clinical Science. He brings decades of experience designing, managing and leading complex cell and gene therapy clinical programs, including TIL therapies. Dr. Hari was formerly the Chief of Hematology and Oncology at the Medical College of Wisconsin and served the American Society of Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (ASTCT) as its secretary.

Additionally, Obsidian announces the appointment of Matthew Norkunas, M.D., M.B.A., to its Board of Directors. Dr. Norkunas is an experienced biotechnology executive, currently serving as Chief Financial Officer at Generation Bio. He has previously served as Chief Financial officer at SomaLogic and has a background in healthcare investing and medicine. Dr. Norkunas began his career as a practicing anesthesiologist. Dr. Norkunas earned a Master of Business Administration from Columbia Business School, a medical degree from University of Maryland School of Medicine, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from St. Mary’s College of Maryland.

“I am delighted to welcome Drs. Jagasia and Hari to the Obsidian leadership team. Their appointments deepen Obsidian’s clinical expertise and align with the Company’s current focus on clinical development and advancing its lead TIL program, OBX-115,” said Maria Fardis, Ph.D., Executive Chair of Obsidian’s Board of Directors. “I am appreciative of the critical progress made by the prior leadership in advancing Obsidian through preclinical development and successfully into the clinic. I am also pleased to announce Dr. Norkunas’ appointment to the Board. He brings deep operational experience and strong financial expertise and I look forward to his future contributions to the Board. The Company is well poised for continued advancement in line with our plan.”

 

About OBX-115

Obsidian’s lead investigational cytoTIL15 program, OBX-115, is a novel engineered tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy armed with regulated membrane-bound IL15 that has the potential to become a meaningful therapeutic option for patients suffering from metastatic melanoma and other solid tumors by leveraging the expected benefits of mbIL15 and Obsidian’s proprietary, differentiated manufacturing process. OBX-115 preclinical data have demonstrated enhanced TIL persistence, potency and improved tumor control compared to un-engineered TILs plus IL2. OBX-115 also has the potential benefit to patients by removing the need for concomitant IL2 therapy, which is both costly and typically poorly tolerated, limiting the potential eligible patient population for TIL therapy. The Phase I FIH clinical trial for OBX-115 is currently recruiting patients. Information regarding the clinical trial is available at clinicaltrials.gov: NCT05470283.

About Obsidian Therapeutics

Obsidian Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical biotechnology company pioneering engineered cell and gene therapies to deliver transformative outcomes for patients with intractable diseases. Obsidian’s proprietary cytoDRiVE® technology provides a way to precisely control the timing and level of protein function by using FDA approved small molecules. Obsidian is headquartered in Cambridge, Mass. The Company has collaborations with Bristol Myers Squibb and Vertex Pharmaceuticals. For more information, please visit www.obsidiantx.com and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter.

 

Media Contact

Ryan Daws

Chief Financial Officer

media@obsidiantx.com

Back to News
Obsidian Therapeutics
  • About Us
  • Our Science
  • Our Lead Clinical Program
  • News
  • Join Our Team
  • Contact

Privacy // Terms of Use
© 2025 Obsidian Therapeutics, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Our programs, including OBX-115, and cytoDRIVE® Platform are investigational and have not been approved by the FDA or any other regulatory agency.

Our Pipeline Job Postings
We use cookies on our website to optimize your experience, analyze site usage, and to assist with our marketing activities. By continuing to navigate our website, you consent to the use of cookies, our privacy policy and terms of use.
Accept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT