Metacrine Announces Appointment of Dr. Ken Song as President and Chief Executive Officer

SAN DIEGO, Sept. 14, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Metacrine, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on developing innovative therapeutics in metabolic disease through advances in endocrine research, today announced the appointment of Ken Song, M.D., as its new president, chief executive officer and director.  Dr. Song was most recently co-founder and chief executive officer of Ariosa Diagnostics, which was acquired by Roche in 2015 for $625 million.

"Ken's proven leadership, track record and broad expertise serving the life science community over the last several years will build on Metacrine's progress as it continues to advance its therapeutic pipeline and drive to important milestones," said Richard Heyman, chairman of the board of directors of Metacrine. "We are very excited about the prospects of the company's evolution under Ken's leadership as the company progresses toward the clinical advancement of its programs."

Dr. Song's experience spans clinical medicine, basic science research, venture capital, and entrepreneurship.  As co-inventor of Ariosa's flagship product he successfully led the organization from early research to product development to commercialization in over 100 countries. Prior to Ariosa, Dr. Song was a venture capital investor at Venrock and served as a consultant at McKinsey & Company. Dr. Song trained in internal medicine at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and then went on to specialize in gastroenterology and hepatology at the University of Washington along with a scientific fellowship at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. He received his B.S. in Biology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and his M.D. from the University of California, San Francisco.

"I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to lead Metacrine and work with an outstanding team and group of investors," said Dr. Song. "With the company's two mechanistically distinct programs targeting large clinical needs, I believe Metacrine has the potential to bring forth novel medicines that can positively impact tens of millions of people."

About Metacrine

Metacrine is a privately-held biotechnology company headquartered in San Diego, CA. The company is focused on advancing research in nuclear hormone receptors for treatment of metabolic diseases. For more information, visit www.metacrine.com.

Contact: 

Julie Rathbun 
Rathbun Communications
[email protected]                                            
206.769.9219

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SOURCE Metacrine

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