Cerevance Appoints Karl Kieburtz, M.D., M.P.H., as Chief Medical Officer

Appointment solidifies Cerevance’s leadership team as the company advances solengepras through Phase 3 development in Parkinson’s disease

BOSTON, Oct. 05, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cerevance, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company advancing targeted therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, today announced the appointment of Karl Kieburtz, M.D., M.P.H., as chief medical officer. Dr. Kieburtz brings extensive expertise in neurology, clinical research, and drug development, having served in a range of capacities across dozens of global Parkinson’s disease clinical trials over the past three decades.

Dr. Kieburtz has supported Cerevance and the development of solengepras in an advisory capacity for the past several years, working closely with the Cerevance team and contributing to the clinical development of solengepras. He has also worked closely with the company’s investors and business partners, bringing extensive, hands-on expertise in the treatment of people with Parkinson’s disease.

“We are thrilled to welcome Karl to Cerevance in this expanded leadership role,” said Craig Thompson, chief executive officer of Cerevance. “Karl has been a valued advisor to and collaborator with Cerevance, and his deep expertise in Parkinson’s disease and clinical development has given him a unique understanding of our lead program, our pipeline, our science, and the needs of patients. As we advance solengepras through Phase 3 development and build the clinical and regulatory foundation to potentially bring a new treatment option to patients, Karl’s leadership will be instrumental in helping us translate our differentiated, non-dopaminergic approach into a meaningful therapy for people living with Parkinson’s disease.”

In addition to his role as chief medical officer at Cerevance, Dr. Kieburtz will continue to serve on the board of directors of BlueRidge Life Sciences and maintain an advisory role with the company.

“I am excited to join Cerevance at this important stage in the company’s evolution,” said Dr. Kieburtz. “Cerevance is pursuing a novel, differentiated approach to Parkinson disease by targeting biology beyond the traditional dopaminergic pathway. The clinical data generated to date with solengepras are encouraging, and its once-daily oral, non-dopaminergic mechanism has the potential to represent a significant evolution in the treatment of Parkinson disease.”

Dr. Kieburtz is a Professor of Neurology at the University of Rochester and co-founder of Clintrex Research LLC, a division of BlueRidge Life Sciences. He is a recognized expert in Parkinson’s disease and clinical research, with extensive experience in the design, conduct, and interpretation of clinical trials in neurological disorders. Dr. Kieburtz will play a key role in advancing solengepras through the pivotal Phase 3 ARISE trial for Parkinson’s disease. The trial is evaluating solengepras as an adjunctive therapy to levodopa and other background Parkinson’s disease medications, with a focus on reducing daily OFF time.

About Cerevance 
Cerevance is focused on advancing cell type-specific therapies for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Our most advanced investigational treatment, solengepras, is a once-daily, oral, non-dopaminergic therapy that is currently in Phase 3 development as an adjunctive treatment for Parkinson’s disease. If approved, solengepras would be the first GPR6 inhibitor available for Parkinson’s disease. Our second investigational treatment, CVN293, is a highly selective investigational oral inhibitor targeting THIK1 (KCNK13), a two-pore potassium channel family member. CVN293 represents a potentially novel intervention point for neurodegenerative disorders. Both programs were validated using our proprietary platform, Nuclear Enriched Transcript Sort sequencing (NETSseq), which enables identification of potential drug targets from human brain samples expressed in specific cell types, including those present at very low levels or within rare cell populations, and whose expression may change as a disease progresses.

For more information, please visit www.cerevance.com and follow us on LinkedIn.  

Contacts

Cerevance:
Johnna Simoes, ir@cerevance.com 

Media: 
Christian Edginton, Real Chemistry, media@cerevance.com