Mount Temple man steps back from biotech firm

Jack O'Meara, originally from Mount Temple, Athlone, has announced his departure as chief executive of his successful liver research company, Ochre Bio.

The Oxford-based company develops RNA medicines for liver disease and tests its drugs on hundreds of donated human livers that are being kept alive in laboratories in New York.

In May, the company signed a partnership deal with German firm Boehringer Ingelheim, which saw Ochre Bio receive up to $35 million in upfront and near-term research-based milestone payments.

If those research targets proved successful, the company was also in line for various clinical, regulatory and commercial milestones as well as tiered royalties that could be worth more than €1 billion.

Jack was named on the prestigious Forbes '30 Under 30' Europe list in the 'Science and Healthcare' category in 2023, just before his 30th birthday.

Ochre Bio develops treatments using technologies such as genomics, to find new biological approaches, and then testing its products directly on human livers rather than on mice.

The donor livers used in the testing are ones which cannot be used for transplant because they are diseased, old or fatty.

The aim is to improve the quality of donor livers available for transplant surgery. As people live longer and consume more processed foods, up to 30% of donated livers are now unsuitable for use as transplants.

The treatment by Ochre Bio may improve the quality of donated livers, and increase the amount available for transplant patients.

In a LinkedIn post announcing his decision to step down as Ochre Bio CEO, Jack said, “The company has a couple of years runway in light of our recent two partnerships with BI & GSK, a phenomenal team to execute on an ambitious vision, and a platform uncovering novel insights into one of the most complex health conditions of our time.

“I have no doubt these talented folks will go on to make a difference in the lives of liver disease patients globally.”

In a statement attached to this post, Dr Eliot Forster, who joined Ochre Bio as chair in 2023 and will take over as executive chair in an interim capacity, said “Under Jack's leadership, Ochre closed several rounds of financing from top tier investors. Ochre also recently closed two high-value pharma partnerships with GSK and BI. Jack steps away with Ochre Bio poised for a successful future wiht a strong financial and science foundation.”

In a tweet announcing his decision, Jack said “Onto the next (extremely hard) thing: neuro — because liver disease was too easy…”