Decoy Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: DCOY) announced the appointment of Brad L. Pentelute as chair of its Scientific Advisory Board. Pentelute serves as a professor of chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and was a co-founder of Decoy, having worked as a technology advisor since the company's inception.

The biotechnology company develops what it calls Designable Multi-Antivirals, which are designed to target multiple viral threats using shared viral mechanisms. These treatments are built on Decoy's peptide conjugate platform called IMP³ACT, which combines artificial intelligence design with synthesis methods.

Pentelute's research focuses on peptide and protein chemistry, including rapid flow peptide synthesis and intracellular delivery. His laboratory at MIT has developed automated technologies for designing and testing peptide therapeutics.

"Antiviral medicine has been stuck in a one-virus, one-drug model for too long. What Decoy is building with D-MAVs is a different way of thinking about the problem, designing across multiple viruses rather than reacting to them one at a time," Pentelute said in the company's statement.

The appointment follows Shahin Gharakhanian's tenure as the previous chair of the Scientific Advisory Board. Chief Executive Officer Rick Pierce thanked Gharakhanian for his contributions during what the company described as a foundational period.

Decoy Therapeutics describes itself as a clinical-stage biotechnology company focusing on respiratory viruses. The company's lead programs target what it characterizes as viruses that cause health and societal disruption.