MARLBOROUGH: Akoya Biosciences Inc. announced the appointment of Frederic Pla, PhD, as Chief Operating Officer.

Dr. Pla will play a key role in preparing the company as it scales to serve the needs of discovery and clinical researchers adopting spatial biology.

Dr. Pla joins Akoya with deep scientific and operational experience and a record of achieving sustainable growth across some of the most successful and innovative companies and institutions in the life sciences industry.

“Frederic’s breadth of experience across organizations of different sizes and in various stages within life sciences including discovery, clinical and translational research, and diagnostics will help prepare Akoya to grow its presence in these distinct market segments,” said Brian McKelligon, CEO of Akoya Biosciences.

“His demonstrated operational and strategic excellence will be crucial to our ability to expand and meet customers’ needs in the growing field of spatial biology.”

Most recently, as Chief Operating Officer of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI), the groundbreaking research organization founded by Silicon Valley entrepreneur Sean Parker, Dr. Pla oversaw day-to-day operations to accelerate the development of breakthrough immunotherapies for cancer.

His responsibilities also included oversight of strategic alliances and legal, financial, and communications activities.

Previously, he was Chief Operating Officer at Genomic Health where he had a major role in driving the growth of the company’s pioneering genomic testing business until its sale for $2.8 billion to Exact Sciences Corp. in 2019. He was responsible for leading product portfolio management, R&D, clinical development, IT, operations, medical affairs, and business development.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Pla held senior leadership positions at some of the leading life sciences companies, including Life Technologies, where he was VP, Corporate Development, and prior to that, GE Healthcare, where he was GM, IT Enterprise Solutions. He also worked as a Research Scientist and Flight Test Engineer at NASA.

He has a PhD in acoustics from Penn State University, and an MS in engineering, acoustics, and vibrations from the University of Southampton, UK.

“As a leading company in the spatial biology domain, I believe Akoya Biosciences’ solutions will play a critical role in enabling researchers to better understand the complex dynamics of cell and tissue behavior in diseased and healthy samples,” said Dr. Pla.

“It is an honor to play a leadership role in the company’s journey in driving breakthrough discoveries and translating them into predictive biomarkers to improve human health.”

Akoya Biosciences offers comprehensive single-cell imaging solutions that allow researchers to phenotype cells with spatial context and visualize how they organize and interact to influence disease progression and treatment response. www.akoyabio.com