About us

Bioxodes is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a first-in-class drug candidate, Ir-CPI, for the prevention of thrombosis and neuroinflammation in hemorrhagic stroke patients.

Company Overview

About us

Company overview

Bioxodes takes advantage of its deep understanding of the thrombo-inflammatory events to design novel product candidates with an aim to achieve anticoagulation without hemorrhagic risk.

Our innovative pipeline includes a clinical-stage program for the prevention of thrombosis and neuroinflammation in patients with an intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH).

The lead product candidate of this program, Ir-CPI, exhibits a unique mechanism of action by targeting coagulation factors (FXIIa and FXIa) and neutrophils, key driver components of neuroinflammatory and thrombotic processes involved in ICH.

Bioxodes has completed with success the active phase of its First-in-Human study performed in healthy adult volunteers with Ir-CPI.

In parallel, Bioxodes is developing a pipeline of drug candidates targeting chronic thrombo-inflammatory and inflammatory diseases.

Bioxodes is located in the Brussels South Charleroi Biopark, Belgium.

Our Team

Management

- Before founding Bioxodes, Edmond Godfroid was a long standing senior Professor at the University of Brussels (ULB) where he applied his expertise in molecular biology to the discovery of pharmacologically active proteins in the saliva of the tick Ixodes ricinus. Dr Godfroid’s and his former team’s work is the basis for the creation of Bioxodes. He received his PhD in Molecular Biology from the ULB in 1988 and subsequently acquired post-doctoral experience in the field of Alzheimer’s disease at the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL). In 1992, he joined Applied Genetics (ULB) where he developed the first PCR-based diagnostic device specific to the tick-borne bacterial pathogen, Borrelia burgdorferi, the causal agent of Lyme disease. In 1995, Dr Godfroid began researches on the molecular interaction between Ixodes ticks and their hosts. He was the Head of the Ectoparasite Molecular Biology Unit at ULB. He has experience of a range of collaborations with academic groups and pharmaceutical companies. Dr Godfroid is a co-founder of Bioxodes.
- Marc Dechamps is a biologist with extensive experience in the pharmaceutical industry dating back more than 35 years. During his career, he has worked for corporate pharma companies including GSK & ViiVHealthcare, building his expertise in market development for new products, including infectious diseases, immunological disorders, oncology, CNS disorders and vaccines. In 2016, Marc founded and became managing director of XMF consulting, a company which supports biotech and biopharma businesses with strategic advice and management leadership. He has also served as managing director of Delphi Genetics (CDMO) and interim CEO of eTheRNA Immunotherapies (a Belgian mRNA clinical stage biotech company). Marc is currently co-academic director for the newly created advanced masters in biotech & medtech ventures at the Solvay Brussels School of Economics & Management. He is also responsible for representing BioWin – the life sciences cluster of Wallonia – on the international stage - and serves as president of the board for the Council of European BioRegions (CEBR) and the investment group Investsud Tech.
- Pierre Detrixhe is Managing Partner at Financière spin-off luxembourgeoise and Venture Director at Newton Biocapital. He brings more than 10 years of experience in the field of venture capital and has accompanied many companies in the start-up phase. Previously, he held positions of scientist and technology transfer officer in the biotechnology field. Pierre Detrixhe is Director at the Board of some promising Belgian start-up companies. He holds a Master in Bioengineering from the University of Liège (Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech), Belgium and a Master in Management from the Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium.
- François Fontaine holds a law degree from the University of Brussels and he is a specialist in Tax affairs. He was counsel in various public institutions and cabinet. He is currently general counsel to the Federal Holding and Investment Company (SFPI)-FPIM. SFPI is focusing its investments on innovative Belgian Companies, hoping to contribute to their financial and societal success story. Mr. Fontaine is also a Board member of several companies including biotechs.
- Dr Thérèse Croughs has over 30 years of experience in the Pharma and Biotech Industry, specializing in the provision of clinical development and regulatory strategy services to manufacturers and developers of biologics and biotech products. She brings a high level of medical expertise in the fields of hematology, immunology, infectious diseases and oncology, as well as experience of clinical development in biotechnology and regulatory affairs, having taken a number of early stage compounds from preclinical studies to the clinic. Dr Croughs started her career working in R&D for Bayer, NovoNordisk and BioAlliance Pharma, Paris, before joining Cytheris and then Neovacs as CMO. Whilst there, she was responsible for all R&D development activities, including Regulatory Affairs in EU, US as well as ROW. This included the registration of Kogenate® in EU, Loramyc® (miconazole Lauriad) in FR-EU and US/Japan, together with other applications using the same drug delivery technology. She was also responsible for the management of Medical Affairs and R&D and the development of a NCE pipeline (therapies developed to target drug resistance such as small molecules in infectious diseases, gene therapy in oncology).
- Marc Dechamps is a biologist with extensive experience in the pharmaceutical industry dating back more than 35 years. During his career, he has worked for corporate pharma companies including GSK & ViiVHealthcare, building his expertise in market development for new products, including infectious diseases, immunological disorders, oncology, CNS disorders and vaccines. In 2016, Marc founded and became managing director of XMF consulting, a company which supports biotech and biopharma businesses with strategic advice and management leadership. He has also served as managing director of Delphi Genetics (CDMO) and interim CEO of eTheRNA Immunotherapies (a Belgian mRNA clinical stage biotech company). Marc is currently co-academic director for the newly created advanced masters in biotech & medtech ventures at the Solvay Brussels School of Economics & Management. He is also responsible for representing BioWin – the life sciences cluster of Wallonia – on the international stage - and serves as president of the board for the Council of European BioRegions (CEBR) and the investment group Investsud Tech.
- Before founding Bioxodes, Edmond Godfroid was a long standing senior Professor at the University of Brussels (ULB) where he applied his expertise in molecular biology to the discovery of pharmacologically active proteins in the saliva of the tick Ixodes ricinus. Dr Godfroid’s and his former team’s work is the basis for the creation of Bioxodes. He received his PhD in Molecular Biology from the ULB in 1988 and subsequently acquired post-doctoral experience in the field of Alzheimer’s disease at the Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL). In 1992, he joined Applied Genetics (ULB) where he developed the first PCR-based diagnostic device specific to the tick-borne bacterial pathogen, Borrelia burgdorferi, the causal agent of Lyme disease. In 1995, Dr Godfroid began researches on the molecular interaction between Ixodes ticks and their hosts. He was the Head of the Ectoparasite Molecular Biology Unit at ULB. He has experience of a range of collaborations with academic groups and pharmaceutical companies. Dr Godfroid is a co-founder of Bioxodes.
- Dr. Hans Warrinnier joined Bioxodes following a leadership tenure at Roche Belgium where he held various senior leadership positions such as Medical Director. In this position, he led a team of 70+ across Clinical Operations, Medical Affairs and Medical Information, Drug Safety and Regulatory Affairs. He developed and supported affiliate and global clinical studies in different therapeutic areas, maintaining Belgium’s top spot in clinical trials per capita in the world. He delivered strategic expertise and advice for market access solutions in Belgium across different therapeutic areas, including oncology, hematology, neurology, immunology, and hemophilia. In addition to receiving his medical degree from the KU Leuven in Belgium, Dr. Warrinnier followed Business school programs from London Business School and Harvard Business School.
- Joël Tassignon obtained his PhD in immunology from the University of Brussels (ULB) and a Master in Total Quality Management from the Polytechnic Faculty of the University of Mons. After postdoctoral research on breast cancers at Bordet Institute (Brussels) and on transplantation at Erasme Hospital (ULB, discovery of a new immunosuppressant), he became project manager and lab director of a ULB spin-off. He then continued working in the management field as coach in innovation for companies and as director of a laboratory in a Belgian research center acting as a CRO. In parallel to the management of people, projects, technological platforms and laboratories, he was also involved in the management of several types of quality systems as manager and auditor. Joël is now Senior Project Manager and Quality Assurance Manager at Bioxodes.
- Sandrine Derochette obtained her PhD in Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Liège in 2015 (study of the effect of curcumin on oxidative response of neutrophils). After her PhD, she joined Bioxodes as Study Coordinator in 2015. She is now Project Manager and member of the Quality Assurance team at Bioxodes.
- Valérie Pireaux obtained her PhD in Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology (atherosclerosis specialization) from the University of Namur in 2017. After her PhD, she joined Bioxodes as Preclinical Scientist in 2017.
- Estelle Hess obtained her PhD in Immunology from the University of Strasbourg in 2011. She pursued her career by a postdoc at the University of Namur in the field of host pathogen interactions. In 2018, she joined a private company specialized in the development of diagnostic kits in the veterinary field as a project manager and then as an R&D manager. She joined Bioxodes in 2021 and is now holding a position of preclinical scientist.
- Stéphanie Demoulin obtained her PhD in Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences (Immunology & cancer specialization) from the University of Liège in 2014 (study of the implication of dendritic cells in cervical cancer progression). After postdoctoral researches on the developement of therapeutic approaches for breast cancers at the University of Liège, she became Scientific Writer at Bioxodes in 2016. She is now leading medical writing activities for the Company.
- Charlotte obtained her Master in Pharmaceutical Sciences in 2014. Having started her career in pharmacies, she quickly reoriented herself in the field of clinical studies. She began her career in the field of Clinical Research Organization (Medpace) where she developed the qualities needed for the successful development of a Clinical Project Manager. She worked there for 2.5 years, before starting to work as a Clinical Project Manager for a large pharmaceutical company for 3 years (Bristol Myers Squibb). She joined Bioxodes in 2021 where she holds the position of Clinical Project Manager.
- Cindy Hespel obtained her PhD in Immunology from the University of Brussels (ULB) in 2012 (Regulation of Adaptive Immune Responses by Conventional and Inflammatory Dendritic Cells). After her PhD, she began her career as Project Execution Manager (Global Medical Affairs Operations) at GlaxoSmithKline Vaccines for 2 years. She then moved to Bristol Myers Squibb as Clinical Trial-Global Submission Manager managing large portfolio across diverse Therapeutic Areas for 7 years before joining Bioxodes as Regulatory Affairs Manager in 2021.

About us

Advisory Board

- Robin Lemmens, M.D.
  01.
  
  Leuven, Belgium
  Robin Lemmens is a neurologist with specific certification in rehabilitation and the head of the stroke unit at the University Hospitals Leuven (Belgium). His main research interests are imaging of acute stroke focusing on the role of MRI and CT perfusion for prediction of outcome including artificial intelligence and stroke recovery. He is a fellow and member of Board of Directors of the European Stroke Organization, previous chair of ESOTA (European Stroke Organisation Trials Alliance) and vice-chair of the Belgian Stroke Council.
- Rustam Al-Shahi Salman, MA MB BChir PhD FRCP Edin FHEA FESO
  02.
  
  Edinburgh, United Kingdom
  Prof. Salman leads the Research to Understand Stroke due to Haemorrhage (RUSH) programme, which is dedicated to improving the outcome for adults who have diseases that may cause, or have caused, intracranial hemorrhage. He became interested in neurology during undergraduate medical training at Cambridge University. He was inspired to work on common neurological problems by Charles Warlow and the stroke research group in Edinburgh, which he joined in 1998 as an MRC clinical training fellow, progressing to MRC patient-oriented clinician scientist and senior clinical fellowships until 2016. Some of the fundamental study designs of observational clinical epidemiology have underpinned his initial focus on the frequency, prognosis, and pathophysiology of intracranial haemorrhage. Since becoming a professor of clinical neurology at the University of Edinburgh in August 2013, his research has increasingly focussed on methodologically rigorous randomised controlled trials of interventions to prevent and treat stroke due to intracranial haemorrhage. As an honorary consultant neurologist since 2006, he cares for people with neurological conditions including stroke in-hours and out-of-hours, he audits their care, and he helps undergraduate and postgraduate students to develop and address clinical uncertainties within the RUSH programme.
- Ashkan Shoamanesh, M.D.
  03.
  
  Hamilton, Canada
  Dr. Shoamanesh is an Associate Professor of Medicine (Div. of Neurology) at McMaster University, Canada where he holds the Marta and Owen Boris Chair in Stroke Research and Care, and the Director of the Hemorrhagic Stroke Research Program and a Scientist at the affiliated Population Health Research Institute. His research program aims to develop new treatments and standards of care that improve patient outcomes through the design and efficient execution of acute stroke and secondary stroke prevention randomized trials.
- Matthias Endres, M.D.
  04.
  
  Berlin, Germany
  Matthias Endres is Professor and Chair of Neurology at the Charité Hospital in Berlin. He is also on the Board of Directors of the Center for Stroke Research Berlin. His major research interests are preventive vascular mechanisms, mechanisms of cell death, regeneration and functional outcome, heart-brain interaction, post-stroke depression, and telemedicine. Matthias Endres is author of more than 500 research articles, reviews, and editorials. He is a member of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and Visiting Professor at the University of Oxford, U.K.
- David Seiffge, M.D.
  05.
  
  Bern, Switzerland
  David Seiffge is vice-head of the stroke center and head of the Neuro Clinical Trial Unit at the University Hospital in Bern and associated Professor of Clincal Neurology at the University of Bern, Switzerland. His main research interest are ischaemic stroke, oral anticoagulants and intracerebral haemorrhage. He is involved in several randomized controlled trials studying the treatment of intracerebral haemorrhage.
- Cedric Hermans, M.D, Ph.D, FRCP (Lon, Edin)
  06.
  
  Brussels, Belgium
  Prof. Hermans currently heads the Division of Haematology, the Hemostasis and Thrombosis Unit as well as the Hemophilia Center of the Saint-Luc University Hospital in Brussels, Belgium. He was appointed Associate Professor at the Medical School of the Catholic University of Louvain in 2003, Full Professor in 2012 and Vice-Dean in 2015. Prof. Hermans has (co)-authored more than 275 original articles in international journals and is a member of several scientific societies and international advisory boards and collaborative research projects. He was president of EAHAD and is currently member of the Board of Directors of the World Federation of Haemophilia and the Editor-in-Chief of the Haemophilia Journal. His main research interests lie in the area of haemostasis and thrombosis, especially clinical studies on the treatment modalities and the wide spectrum of complications of haemophilia in both developed and developing countries, as well as new anticoagulants and the management of thrombosis.
- Thomas Lecompte, M.D
  07.
  
  Geneva, Switzerland
  Dr. Lecompte is a former associate physician in the Hospital Department of Medicine and Full Professor in the Academic Department of Medicine at the University of Geneva. Since the beginning of his scientific carrier, Dr. Lecompte has been interested in haemostasis and more specifically in blood platelets. His first paper of basic research was on phospholipid metabolism in platelets and was published as a Letter in Nature. Dr. Lecompte has been since them interested in inherited platelet disorders – and the way to investigate them, including extracellular vesicles. Dr. Lecompte has conducted research on the so-called antiphospholipid antibodies and on acquired haemostatic disturbances in complex settings associated with a thrombotic risk (COVID-19; post-vaccine thrombosis and thrombocytopenia; haematological malignancies such as essential thrombocythemia and multiple myeloma; liver cirrhosis); on the phenotyping of primary haemostasis under flow conditions and of the blood coagulation system by means of thrombin generation assays; on the pharmacology of haemostasis (with special interest in laboratory testing for patients receiving antiplatelet agents and anticoagulant, including parenteral direct thrombin inhibitors; on transfusion products with haemostatic properties; and on heparin-induced thrombocytopenia).
- Denis Vivien, Ph.D
  08.
  
  Caen, France
  Dr. Vivien is Professor and hospital practitioner in Cell Biology, head of the Inserm unit UMR-S U1237 (“physiopathology and Imaging of Neurological Disorders”, PhIND), Scientific director of the Institute Blood and Brain @ Caen-Normandie (BB@C, Inserm, Unicaen, CHU Caen), responsible of the research axis Heart and Brain at the Caen Hospital and of the center for biological resources of the department for clinical research of Caen University Hospital. His lab is a leading group in the field of experimental stroke and on the coordination of clinical trials. Dr. Vivien is also Scientific Advisor for the CRO Strok@lliance through which he offers his laboratory’s expertise and know-how to the pharmaceutical industry, in a bid to accelerate innovative drug development from bench-to-bedside.