Marianne D. De Backer is the Chief Executive Officer and Director of Vir Biotechnology. At Vir, Dr. De Backer works on treatment options for hepatitis, as well as prevention therapies for vulnerable populations against the flu.

Throughout her career, Dr. De Backer has accelerated the growth and impact of large pharmaceutical companies and their portfolios, helping to bring important new therapeutics to patients around the world. She has been recognized for her leadership and contributions to the biopharma industry, being named to the Forbes 50 over 50 list and as one of Fierce Pharma’s Most Influential People in Biopharma.

Prior to joining Vir, Dr. De Backer served in executive leadership roles at Bayer AG Pharmaceuticals, where she spearheaded the company’s external innovation growth agenda, and Johnson & Johnson. Dr. De Backer started her career in drug discovery research, where she led teams in both Europe and the United States. She is an inventor on seven patents.

Dr. De Backer received her Master of Business Administration degree from Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands. She holds a Master of Science in Molecular Biology from Vrije Universiteit, Brussels, and Master of Science in Engineering Biochemistry and a Ph.D. in Biotechnology from Ghent University, Belgium. She serves as a non-executive Director on the Board of the Gladstone Foundation.

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