Christopher Arendt

Bio:

Christopher Arendt oversees Takeda’s global research laboratories in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Shonan, Japan. Since joining Takeda nearly a decade ago, he has played a pivotal role in strengthening the company’s R&D capabilities across its core therapeutic areas: Oncology, Neuroscience, and Gastrointestinal and Inflammation.

Chris began his tenure at Takeda as the Head of the Immunology Drug Discovery Unit, later expanding his leadership to include the Oncology Drug Discovery Unit and subsequently the Oncology Therapeutic Area Unit. In these roles, he guided the advancement of promising novel mechanisms of action (MOAs) to the clinic, including antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), T cell engagers, and immunotherapies. These approaches were developed both in Takeda’s labs and in collaboration with cutting-edge teams around the world.

During his tenure in Oncology, the group’s work supported the regulatory approval of ICLUSIG for the treatment of newly diagnosed, first-line patients with Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia (Ph+ ALL), as well as FRUZAQLA for the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) in patients previously treated with other therapies.

As Takeda’s CSO and Head of Research, Chris is driving the digital transformation of Takeda Research, enabling advanced data and artificial intelligence capabilities across discovery functions, and is also supporting the growth of the company’s innovative pipeline. One highlight from Takeda's Research labs is its pipeline of novel orexin agonists, including Oveporextin, a first-in-class, oral OX2R agonist that recently completed two successful Phase 3 trials in narcolepsy type 1.

Prior to Takeda, Chris spent over 13 years at Sanofi, where he contributed to the development of immunotherapies and supported the NDA approval of AUBAGIO, as well as the early-stage execution of

the Sanofi/Regeneron partnership across multiple indications. After receiving his PhD in Immunology, he completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the lab of Dr. Dan Littman at the Skirball Institute for Biomedical Research at New York University Medical Center.