Capabilities

Driving innovation in development, manufacturing, and IP

The use of DNA based technology to address anti-cancer immunotherapies and the development of vaccines requires strategic investment and the ability to scale.

At Imunon, we’ve built a bench of internal talent and key partners across science, research, commercialization, and manufacturing, enabling our non-viral DNA technology to go from sequence to the clinic to approved products in record time.

As a small biotechnology company, we are uniquely equipped to manage the full range of drug development from within our site: from bench discovery, to making the active pharmaceutical ingredient, to formulation, to invitro, invivo and animal testing, and finally to human clinical production and delivery.  We have complete control over the entire process, including end-to-end quality control, testing and product release. This affords us enormous advantages in flexibility, speed and cost.

Our integrated inhouse processes also assure that at each stage of the development process, we fully understand the steps that are still to come.  We can look ahead and around the corners as we progress candidates towards the clinic, thus avoiding being blindsided by unexpected downstream challenges.

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Leadership

Our executive team has 50 combined years of experience in the biotech industry, including at global brands like Lilly, Biogen, Science 37, Valentis, Genemedicine, Novamax and more.

Meet the Team

Key Partners

We believe in the power of collaboration and scientific progress – our partners include some of the world’s most respected organizations and institutions.

Learn More
two people shaking hands
translucent chromosomes and dna

Formulation Development

IMUNON has developed the inhouse know-how in technology and development to take a scientific insight, turn it into an active ingredient and then formulate it into a drug which may be ultimately available as a commercial therapeutic. We have built our core capabilities around delivery systems, including novel polymers and liposomes that can take a portion of DNA or RNA and migrate it to a cell in the body. We have built impressive skills and a strong intellectual property foundation around our formulation, chemistry and delivery systems, with a particular emphasis on delivering DNA

End-to-end Quality Control

Despite our smaller size, we have the unique capacity to achieve complete inhouse control over development and release of our clinical candidates and products.  We control all development from our site, and have the capability and capacity to do all testing and release, including ongoing stability testing. This is advantageous in that we are not forced to depend on outside contract manufacturing and development organizations (CDMO’s) to execute these steps on our behalf. This can help us achieve not only cost savings, but much greater flexibility and speed in our development timelines.

scientist using pipette in laboratory
Scientist inserting vials into centrifuge

In-House Manufacturing

We recently launched a GMP facility, based in Huntsville, Alabama, which has produced drug product for multiple clinical trials, enabling simple handling an distribution leading to strong product margins at commercial scale.

View the Launch Video

  • Internal capability to produce plasmid DNA and Facilitating Agent to support Phase 1 and Phase 3 Studies.
  • 1,000 ft2 of space dedicated to GMP manufacturing
  • Supported by adjacent GMP Quality Control Laboratory

Jeffrey W. Church

interim Chief Financial Officer

Jeffrey W. Church joined Imunon in July 2010 as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Church was appointed Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Imunon in July 2013. The appointment marked Mr. Church’s resumption of the role of Chief Financial Officer, a position he held prior to his promotion to Senior Vice President in July 2011, while also granting him responsibility for corporate investor relations. In 2018, Mr. Church was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary and where he served in this capacity until his retirement in June 2024. In January 2026, Mr. Church was appointed interim Chief Financial Officer. He has over 30 years of experience in corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, investor relations, and SEC reporting. Prior to joining Imunon, Mr. Church held senior financial executive positions with several private and public clinical-stage life science companies, including Alba Therapeutics Corporation, Novavax, Inc., GenVec, Inc., and Meridian Medical Technologies, Inc. Mr. Church started his career in 1979 with the public accounting firm Price Waterhouse. Mr. Church holds a BS degree from the University of Maryland and received his Maryland Certified Public Accountant accreditation in 1979.

Khursheed Anwer, PhD, MBA

Executive Vice President and Chief Science Officer

Khursheed Anwer, PhD, MBA, assumed the title of Executive Vice President and Chief Science Officer, upon Imunon’s June 2014 acquisition of EGEN, Inc., where he was President and Chief Science Officer, a position he held since 2009. He joined EGEN, Inc. in July, 2002, as Vice President of Research and Development, and directed the company’s clinical and research and development functions throughout his tenure at EGEN, Inc. Dr. Anwer has a PhD in Physiology/Pharmacology from Ohio University and received postdoctoral training from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Before joining EGEN, Inc., Dr. Anwer was Director of Pre-Clinical Development at Valentis, Inc. From 1993 to 1999, he served in several positions at GeneMedicine, Inc., where he led several research projects in the area of nonviral gene therapy. He has authored more than 40 publications in the area of nonviral gene therapy, resulting from his active career in research and development. Dr. Anwer has served as an adjunct faculty member in the Biology Department at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and a board member of the University of Alabama Business School, STEP.

Sebastien Hazard, M.D.

Executive vice president & chief Medical officer

Dr. Sebastien Hazard, M.D. was appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of Imunon in December 2023.  Prior to joining Imunon, Dr. Hazard served as Senior Vice President, Head of Clinical Development at Bicycle Therapeutics plc from April 2021 through September 2023.  Prior to joining Bicycle Therapeutics, Dr. Hazard served as Clinical Development Lead at GSK from June 2019 to April 2021.  He also served as Senior Medical Director of Clinical Development from July 2018 to May 2019, and Senior Medical Director of Global Medical Affairs from August 2016 to July 2018 at TESARO, Inc.  Dr. Hazard held various positions within Genentech including Medical Director in Lung Cancer of US Medical Affairs from November 2012 to July 2016.  Earlier in his career Dr. Hazard served as an advisor to the head of the French Drug Agency and to the French Health Minister’s cabinet.  Dr. Hazard holds a Doctorate in Medicine, Internal Medicine and Public Health from Paris VI Pitie Salpetriere an Executive MBA from INSEAD and Master’s degree in epidemiology and statistics applied to clinical research from Paris VI University.