Our History

Orphazyme was founded in Denmark in 2009 on a scientific discovery about the role of heat shock proteins (HSPs), which was described in a well-cited article published in the journal Nature.

We translated this scientific discovery into late-stage clinical trials of our investigational drug candidate, arimoclomol, with the aim of developing new treatment options for people with neurodegenerative diseases, such as Niemann-Pick disease type-C (NPC).

In May 2022, substantially all of Orphazyme’s assets and business activities, including those relating to the development and approval of arimoclomol, were sold to KemPharm Denmark A/S, a wholly owned subsidiary of KemPharm Inc.

Our Core Values

COURAGE

PERSEVERANCE

CARE

INTEGRITY

Global Leadership Team
Anders Vadsholt, MBA

Anders Vadsholt, MBA

Chief Executive Officer & Chief Financial Officer

  • MBA from Melbourne University, MSc in Commercial Law and Economics from Copenhagen Business School
  • Joined in 2016
  • 25 years' biotech and corporate finance experience
  • Previously at Topotarget, Bankinvest Biomedical Venture, and Carnegie Investment Banking
Global Board of Directors
Bo Jesper Hansen

Bo Jesper Hansen

Chairman of the Board

  • Member since 2010
  • Committees: Audit; Remuneration (Chair); Nomination (Chair)
  • Born 1958, Danish nationality
  • Bo Jesper Hansen holds a MD and PhD degree in Medicine from the University of Copenhagen.
Anders Vadsholt

Anders Vadsholt

Board Member

  • Member since 2022
  • Committees: Audit; Remuneration; Nomination
  • Born in 1969, Danish nationality
  • MBA from Melbourne University, MSc in Commercial Law and Economics from Copenhagen Business School.
John Sommer Schmidt

John Sommer Schmidt

Board Member

  • Member since 2022
  • Committees: Audit (Chair); Remuneration; Nomination
  • Born in 1973, Danish nationality
  • Holds a Law degree from Aarhus University, a LL.M. from University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, and a B.Sc. (jur.) from Aarhus School of Business 1998. Appointed lawyer by the Danish Bar and law Society in 2004.