Biotechnology company TxCell, which develops personalized cell-based immunotherapies using for chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, has named Damian Marron chief executive officer. Prior to joining the Valbonne, France-based firm, Mr Marron was CEO of clinical stage biotechnology company Cytheris. Furthermore, from 2008-2012 he was CEO of Trophos. Under his tenure, Trophos spearheaded a group of major EU funded consortia of leading global experts and specialists working on a range of orphan diseases. Mr Marron succeeds Francois Meyer who has now been appointed executive chair of the TxCell's board of directors.

Damian Marron has left his CEO post at neurology- and cardiology-focused Trophos to take up the top job at privately-held biopharmaceutical company Cytheris. Mr Marron takes over from Dr François Thomas, who was acting president and CEO. Taking his place at Trophos is Christine Placet, who was previously the company's CFO.

The Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has adopted 16 positive opinions at its May meeting. Of these, six were adopted following a second discussion by the committee after the sponsoring company had responded to questions, and the other 10 were after their first consideration. The positive opinions constitute recommendations to the EMA, and are neither final decisions granting drugs EU orphan drug designation (these decisions are usually adopted within the space of a few weeks) nor are they recommendations for marketing authorisation.

The UK's Sunday Times newspaper, in collaboration with FastTrack, last month published its annual Top Track 100 league table of the top 100 private companies in the UK with the greatest sales. Unsurprisingly, pharma and biotech companies were nowhere to be seen.