Nkarta Announces The Appointment Shawn Rose As Chief Medical Officer & Head Of R&D Amid Shift Toward Autoimmune Focus

Nkarta, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing engineered natural killer (NK) cell therapies for the treatment of autoimmune diseases, has announced the appointment of Shawn Rose, M.D., Ph.D., as its new Chief Medical Officer and Head of Research and Development. Dr. Rose will officially assume the role on June 23, 2025. He will succeed David R. Shook, M.D., who is stepping down from the position to explore new opportunities in the oncology field.

Dr. Rose has built a distinguished career in immunology translational medicine, with a strong focus on bringing innovative therapies to patients with autoimmune diseases. Over the years, he has led the progression of more than a dozen programs from the early discovery stage through clinical development. His work has contributed to the development and approval of multiple breakthrough treatments, including Sotyktu, Stelara, and Tremfya.

Paul J. Hastings, CEO of Nkarta, said in a statement, “Dr. Rose joins the Nkarta team at a critical threshold as we discover the power of our NK cell platform to treat autoimmune diseases. He is an enterprise leader with a deep clinical background in rheumatology and immunology that’s ideally suited to maximize the potential of our allogeneic NK cell platform. Shawn’s proven track record as an expert clinician gives me full confidence that he will hit the ground running on day one and meaningfully advance our work in the clinic.”

Dr. Rose also stated, “I am thrilled to join Nkarta to advance innovative cell therapies for patients. I strongly believe that Nkarta’s allogeneic NK cell platform has the potential to be a transformational approach for patients with immune-mediated inflammatory disease. I look forward to working closely with Paul and the broader Nkarta team on developing more treatment options for patients.”

Hastings mentioned, “Dave was an early pioneer of NK cell therapy while working under Nkarta’s scientific founder, Dario Campana, at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and he has tirelessly pursued options that were more convenient for patients with safety utmost in mind. Dave has devoted much of his career to make important contributions to the advancement of natural killer cell therapy, leading our early clinical work in cancer and overseeing key aspects of our strategic shift into a new disease area with agility and flexibility. But Dave is a dedicated oncologist, and he has decided to return to the field he loves. He is a fearless advocate for patients and their well-being and a very good friend who will be missed.”

Most recently, Dr. Rose served as Chief Development Officer, Immunology, at Vividion Therapeutics, where he was responsible for advancing a portfolio targeting previously undruggable proteins in immunology. Prior to that, he held the role of interim Chief Medical Officer and Head of Clinical Development at Magenta Therapeutics, where he oversaw cell-based therapies for patients with cancer, genetic conditions, and immune-related disorders. 

He also held senior clinical and development leadership positions at Annexon Biosciences, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, and Bristol-Myers Squibb. Dr. Rose completed his postdoctoral research and clinical training in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. To ensure a smooth leadership transition, he will be working alongside Dr. Shook, who will remain with the company as a consultant until July 11, 2025.