DiaMedica Therapeutics Appoints Julie Krop as Chief Medical Officer to Advance DM199 Development
Key Insights
DiaMedica Therapeutics (search) has appointed Julie Krop, MD, as Chief Medical Officer, effective immediately, to lead clinical development of DM199 for preeclampsia (search) and acute ischemic stroke (search).
Dr. Krop brings over 20 years of strategic physician executive experience, including previous work on preeclampsia (search) drug development at AMAG Pharmaceuticals (search).
DM199 represents the first pharmaceutically active recombinant form of the KLK1 (search) protein and has shown potential as a disease-modifying therapy in recent Phase 2 Part 1a interim trial results.
DiaMedica Therapeutics (search) Inc. (Nasdaq: DMAC) has appointed Julie Krop, MD, as Chief Medical Officer, effective immediately, as the clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company advances its lead candidate DM199 toward late-stage development for preeclampsia (search) and acute ischemic stroke (search). Dr. Krop succeeds Dr. Lorianne Masuoka, who resigned for personal reasons.
Strategic Leadership Addition
"Her extensive experience in the biopharma industry and track record of advancing innovative therapeutics from proof of concept to approval will be invaluable to our team as we advance toward late-stage clinical development of DM199," said Rick Pauls, President and CEO of DiaMedica. "Additionally, Dr. Krop's previous experience in preeclampsia (search) drug development will be beneficial as we work to provide a treatment for this significant unmet need."
Dr. Krop expressed enthusiasm about joining the company at this pivotal stage: "DM199 has the potential to be a fully disease-modifying therapy for patients with preeclampsia (search), as demonstrated by the recent Phase 2 Part 1a interim trial results. I look forward to helping guide the company's clinical development strategy as we advance this first in class drug candidate into later stage development for both preeclampsia and acute ischemic stroke (search) – two areas of urgent unmet need where no approved treatments currently exist."
Extensive Industry Experience
Dr. Krop brings more than 20 years of experience as a strategic physician executive with leadership spanning multiple therapeutic and orphan indications in both pre-commercial and commercial organizations. Most recently, she served as CMO and Head of Development at PureTech Health, leading multiple rare disease programs from preclinical development through Phase 2 trials.
Her career includes serving as CMO at Freeline Therapeutics (search), where she helped drive a successful IPO and oversaw three clinical stage gene therapy programs. At AMAG Pharmaceuticals (search), she served as CMO and Executive Vice President, contributing to the approval of three drugs and working on the development of an orphan drug candidate for severe preeclampsia (search) treatment.
Dr. Krop has also held senior development roles at Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Stryker Regenerative Medicine, Peptimmune, Millennium Pharmaceuticals, and Pfizer. She received her MD from Brown University School of Medicine, completed her internal medicine residency at Georgetown University Hospital, and fellowships in epidemiology, clinical trial design and endocrinology at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. She is board-certified in Endocrinology.
DM199 Development Program
DiaMedica's lead candidate DM199 represents the first pharmaceutically active recombinant (synthetic) form of the KLK1 (search) protein, an established therapeutic modality in Asia for treating acute ischemic stroke (search), preeclampsia (search) and other vascular diseases. The company is focused on developing novel treatments for preeclampsia, fetal growth restriction (search) and acute ischemic stroke.
Compensation Package
In connection with Dr. Krop's appointment, DiaMedica granted her an inducement stock option to purchase 450,000 shares of the company's common stock under the DiaMedica Therapeutics (search), Inc. 2021 Employment Inducement Incentive Plan. The grant, approved by the compensation committee of the board of directors, will be effective as of her first date of employment on August 11, 2025, and served as a material inducement to her employment acceptance in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4).