Martin Sanders

Dr. Sanders is a co-founder of Io Therapeutics. He serves as Executive Chairman of the Io Therapeutics Board of Directors and as Chief Executive Officer of the company. He brings to Io Therapeutics extensive experience in biopharmaceutical product discovery, research and development, and company formation. He received his M.D. degree from the University of Chicago and trained in Internal Medicine at Barnes Hospital, Washington University Medical Center, in St. Louis. He completed fellowships in allergy, clinical immunology, and basic immunology research at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; and the National Cancer Institute. He trained in clinical rheumatology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. He is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and holds dual sub-specialty board certifications in allergy/clinical immunology and rheumatology. Dr. Sanders held concurrent appointments in drug discovery and clinical pharmacology at the Upjohn Company from 1988 to 1990, and concurrent appointments as Director of Immunobiology Preclinical Research and Director of Clinical Immunology Research at Centocor, Inc., from 1990 to 1992. At Centocor, he was the medical director for the first clinical trials demonstrating the beneficial effects of a TNF inhibitor (Remicade) for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, and Crohn’s disease.

Since 1992, Dr. Sanders has served as an advisor to more than 50 biopharmaceutical companies, in the areas of preclinical and clinical product development. He has participated in the design, execution, monitoring, or analysis of greater than 300 clinical trials; for more than 50 different drugs, biologics, gene therapies, and devices, across diverse therapeutic areas, including rheumatology, allergy, immunology, oncology, vaccines, and metabolic diseases. Dr. Sanders currently serves as a founding member of the advisory committee for the George Schultz Innovation Fund at the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Chicago; and as a member of the Board of Trustees for the University of Rochester.