South Korean biotechnology company Curogen has appointed industry veteran Arvind Sood as Global Chief Operating Officer to spearhead the establishment of its US operations, marking a significant milestone in the company's international expansion strategy. The appointment, announced on June 2, 2025, positions Curogen to accelerate its nanotechnology-based autoimmune disease treatments into global markets.
Sood brings extensive pharmaceutical industry experience, having most recently served as President of US Operations at Innate Pharma SA, a French clinical-stage biotech company. Prior to that role, he spent over two decades as Vice President at Amgen, Inc., the California-based biotechnology leader.
Strategic Leadership Expansion
"Curogen is developing novel combination autoimmune treatments and exploring new pathways to target autoimmune diseases with oral drugs," said Sood. "I'm excited to join the company and help lead the way in transforming the treatment of autoimmune diseases."
Chang-Woo Lee, Chief Executive Officer of Curogen, emphasized the strategic importance of these appointments: "Their combined expertise will help propel Curogen's groundbreaking nanotechnologies into the global marketplace, advancing our mission to bring transformative therapies for autoimmune diseases to patients in need, as well as fundamentally improving the treatment of autoimmune diseases."
Distinguished Board Additions
To support its US initiative, Curogen has expanded its Board of Directors with seven distinguished leaders, bringing together expertise spanning clinical medicine, biotechnology development, and global investment:
- Chang-Woo Lee, Ph.D., Founder and CEO, brings over two decades of medical research experience across academia and biotechnology
- Allan Gibofsky, M.D., Professor of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College and Attending Rheumatologist at Hospital for Special Surgery, where he co-directs the Clinic for Inflammatory Arthritis and Biologic Therapy
- Craig Gordon, M.D., Founder and CEO of GordonMD Global Investments, providing extensive global biopharmaceutical investing experience
- Doug Manion, M.D., FRCP (C), CEO and Director of Flare Therapeutics, contributing over two decades of company building and drug development expertise
- Jaeyeol An, Ph.D., Managing Director at Partners Investments, specializing in bridging Korean biotech innovation with the US market
- Kiho Choi, MBA, Professor at Sungkyunkwan University's Global Entrepreneurship Graduate School and former Intel Capital Managing Director
- Sungjune Hong, LLM, MBA, CEO of Genexine with prior leadership roles at major corporations including Handok and ROKIT Healthcare
Innovative Pipeline Focus
Curogen Technology operates as a preclinical biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing novel therapeutic targets and combinations to address autoimmune diseases. The company's pipeline includes innovative small molecules and multi-specific TRAP proteins targeting conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, hidradenitis suppurativa, and other diseases with high unmet medical need.
Dr. Craig Gordon highlighted the company's transformation: "Curogen has transformed from a pioneering South Korean biotech into a world-class R&D company. I am excited to help guide its U.S. expansion and support Curogen's innovative product pipeline as it takes a prominent place in the global biopharmaceutical landscape."
Global Market Positioning
The strategic appointments reflect Curogen's evolution from a South Korean biotechnology pioneer into a globally positioned research and development company. The company's focus on nanotechnology-based treatments represents an innovative approach to addressing autoimmune diseases, with particular emphasis on developing oral drug formulations that could offer improved patient convenience and compliance compared to existing therapies.
The expansion into the US market, supported by Sood's leadership and the enhanced board expertise, positions Curogen to compete in one of the world's largest pharmaceutical markets while leveraging its proprietary nanotechnology platform for autoimmune disease treatment.
