Broad respiratory virus protection, before it begins
About NorthLinks Bio
Company Overview
NorthLinks Bio is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing HEX17, a first-in-class intranasal antiviral designed to provide broad protection against respiratory viruses at the point of entry. Our simple, preventative approach was evaluated in a Phase 2 human influenza challenge study, demonstrating reduced symptomatic influenza compared with placebo, with comparable safety and tolerability to placebo.
Respiratory viruses remain a major and persistent global health burden, causing millions of hospitalizations and deaths each year. Vaccines provide inconsistent protection as viral strains evolve, leaving many populations vulnerable.
HEX17 is a novel, engineered multivalent carbohydrate-binding module (CBM) designed to address this gap through a strain-independent mechanism. Delivered intranasally, it is designed to bind to sialic acid on nasal cells with the potential to prevent viral entry before infection begins. This approach has the potential to protect against a range of respiratory viruses.
Our Origin
NorthLinks Bio was founded on research from the University of St Andrews on Scotland’s North Sea coast – home to the iconic Links golf courses. Our name reflects both our origins and our approach of linking HEX17 to sialic acid on nasal cells to block viruses before infection begins.
Team
Fanny Cavalié, MBA
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERFanny is the CEO of Northlinks Bio. She brings over twenty years of leadership experience in the life sciences industry, from drug discovery to commercial stages. Fanny has been Venture Partner at Raven, RA Capital Management’s healthcare incubator, since 2024 and was previously Chief Strategy and Business Operations Officer at Foghorn Therapeutics.
Alexander Rumyantsev, MD, PhD, MBA
HEAD OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENTAlexander (Sasha) is a global R&D, clinical development, and strategy leader with over 20 years of experience advancing vaccines and infectious disease programs across biotech and large pharmaceutical companies, including Moderna, Sanofi, and Vaxxinity.
Herbert Chiou, PhD
HEAD OF CMCHerbert Chiou is the Head of CMC at Northlinks Bio. He is a seasoned CMC leader with deep expertise in respiratory drug delivery and complex biologics, spanning formulation optimization, process science and development, scale‑up, and analytical strategy.
Elnaz Menhaji-Klotz, PhD
HEAD OF CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT & OPERATIONSElnaz is Head of Corporate Development and Operations at NorthLinks Bio. She is a cross-functional leader with a track record of building and scaling complex, high-impact programs and partnerships across the life sciences, including at Gates Medical Research Institute (Gates MRI), Pfizer, and AstraZeneca.
Mingkui Zhou, PhD
HEAD OF RESEARCHMing is a biologics, preclinical, and translational research expert with broad experience spanning drug discovery, biomarkers, preclinical development, and early clinical development across biotech and academic organizations in the UK and US
Bill Carton, PhD
SENIOR SCIENTISTBill is a Senior Scientist on the research team at NorthLinks Bio. Previously, he was part of the Exploratory Biology team at Amphista Therapeutics, where he helped elucidate the mechanisms of action of novel targeted protein degradation compounds.
Jennifer Hill, PhD
SENIOR SCIENTISTJennifer is a Senior Scientist at NorthLinks Bio and contributes to advancing a pan-viral treatment for respiratory infections, developing assays to support clinical studies and investigating opportunities for product expansion.
Alkistis Milioni
Project MANAGERAlkistis is a CMC-focused Project Manager at NorthLinks Bio with experience delivering early development and clinical-stage programs across biotech and CDMO environments.
Claire Rothnie
CLINICAL Project MANAGERClaire is a Clinical Project Manager at NorthLinks Bio with over 10 years of experience across CRO, pharmaceutical, and biotech organizations.
Katrina Stuart, MBA
Project MANAGERKatrina is a Project Manager at NorthLinks Bio.
Antoni Tortajada
SENIOR RESEARCH TECHNICIANAntoni is a Senior Research Technician at NorthLinks Bio, where he leads protein production and serves as Lab Manager.
Board of Directors
Chief Executive Officer,
NorthLinks Bio
Non-Executive Director
Non-Executive Director
Non-Executive Director
Non-Executive Director
Non-Executive Director
Advisors
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Jane Potter is a research advisor at NorthLinks Bio, supporting the ongoing development of the company’s multivalent CBM therapeutics platform. Her background is in biochemistry and structural biology, with expertise in protein engineering, biophysics, and preclinical development. She previously carried out postdoctoral research in the academic laboratory from which the company originated, where she contributed to the development of the core mCBM technology and the company’s lead clinical candidate. She later led the research team from 2020–2022 and continues to support preclinical programmes in her current consulting role.
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