Alpine Immune Sciences, Inc. announced the appointment of Jörn Drappa, MD, PhD, to its Board of Directors. Dr. Drappa most recently served as Chief Medical Officer of Ventyx Biosciences. Prior to Ventyx, Dr. Drappa co-founded Viela Bio, and served as its Head of R&D and Chief Medical Officer through its acquisition by Horizon Therapeutics in March 2021 for $3.1 billion.

At Viela Bio, Dr. Drappa led the development of UPLIZNA™ (inebilizumab-cdon) in multiple indications, culminating in its approval for the treatment of Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder (NMOSD). Prior to Viela Bio, he held various roles of increasing responsibility leading clinical development programs at MedImmune/AstraZeneca, Genentech/Roche, and Amgen. Dr. Drappa received his medical and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Cologne in Germany.

He completed a residency in internal medicine at New York Presbyterian Hospital and a fellowship in rheumatology at the Hospital for Special Surgery, NY. Concurrent with Dr. Drappa joining Alpine's Board of Directors, Alpine also announced that Jay Venkatesan, MD has stepped down as a director of Alpine.