UNITY Biotechnology, Inc. announced that Michael Samar, current chief financial officer at Assembly Bio, has been appointed to the company's board of directors as its chair of the audit committee and a member of its compensation committee. Mr. Samar currently serves as chief financial officer of Assembly Bio, having been promoted from SVP of finance and business operations. His prior experience includes serving as vice president of finance and site head for the South San Francisco facility at Acorda Therapeutics; director of financial planning and analysis at Onyx Pharmaceuticals; senior finance director, global planning and analysis at Agennix, and increasingly senior roles within finance at Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical R&D. Mr. Samar obtained his MBA from Villanova University and his BS in finance from Bryant University.

Samar also serves as treasurer on the board of OUTbio Bay Area, Inc., a non-profit organization for LGBTQ+ professionals in the biotech and related industries. Concurrent with Mr. Samar's appointment, Graham K. Cooper has stepped down from the board of directors.