Swedish company Karolinska Development announced the appointment of Bruno Lucidi as Chief Executive Officer of the wholly owned subsidiary KDev Oncology and the portfolio companies Aprea and Akinion Pharmaceuticals. Lucidi was previously CEO of Idenix and Chairman of Pharmasset. He served also as European Head of Oncology for BMS and Global head of Oncology Strategy for J&J.

KDev Oncology assists the clinical portfolio companies in developing cancer drugs and attracting strategic partners and co-investors. Karolinska Development aims to create value by developing innovations from world-class science into differentiated products that can be partnered. Its innovative potential comes from an exclusive deal flow agreement with Karolinska Institutet Innovations AB, along with other cooperation agreements with leading universities. The current portfolio consists of 33 projects, of which 16 are in clinical development.