Xencor Appoints Protein Science Leader Dr. Raymond Deshaies To Board, Strengthens Scientific Leadership

Xencor, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharma company advancing engineered antibody therapies, has announced the appointment of Raymond J. Deshaies, Ph.D., to its board of directors. Dr. Deshaies brings over 25 years of leadership in biotechnology and drug discovery, with a distinguished career that includes serving as senior vice president of global research at Amgen Inc.

“Ray holds a deep understanding of biological mechanisms and has a long track record of translating cutting-edge scientific insights into transformative medicines for patients. We welcome Ray to our Board and look forward to his contributions as we advance our pipeline of novel XmAb® drug candidates through clinical development,” said Bassil Dahiyat, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer at Xencor. 

At Amgen, Dr. Deshaies led efforts that resulted in over 50 clinical candidate nominations and helped build advanced capabilities in multispecific drug discovery and protein engineering. Before joining Amgen in 2017, he was a professor at Caltech, where he contributed significantly to molecular biology research and trained the next generation of scientists. He also co-founded Proteolix, the developer of KYPROLIS®, and Cleave Biosciences.

A widely published scientist and international expert in protein homeostasis and targeted protein degradation, Dr. Deshaies has been recognized by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and elected to both the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His experience is expected to strengthen Xencor’s scientific vision and pipeline strategy.