United States
Four decades of pharmaceutical development experience focused on clinical-stage products. Developed 20 products at Syntex, Cytel and Genentech, and another 30 as a venture capitalist at Sofinnova Ventures and Omega Funds. Author of 90 papers and books, including a 1,000–page treatise on vaccine adjuvants. Initial investor in: Actelion (ATLN), Checkmate (CMPI), InterMune (ITMN), Anesiva (ANSV), Orexigen (OREX), Seattle Genetics (SGEN), Threshold (THLD), and Trius (TSRX), as well as several other biotech companies such as Intellikine (sold to Takeda), Pionyr (partnered w Gilead), Labrys Biologics (sold to Teva), Aeovian, Quanta Therapeutics, and Bicara Therapeutics (Chair, BCAX). First biotech industry scientist to be elected AAPS Fellow (American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists). Founding Member of AAPS. Board of Trustees, Washington University, 2014-22. Chair of the Wash U Chemistry Advisory Board. Past activities include: Adjunct Associate Professor in the Dept. of Pharm Chem at the University of Kansas (KU), Aduro Biotech SAB, Independent Board Member CST (Cell Signaling Technology), Chair of the Washington University Parents Council, Advisor to IAMI (Institute for Advancing Medical Innovation) at the Univ of Kansas, Advisor to Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise, Founding Venture Advisory Board Member of the IAVI (International AIDS Vaccine Initiative) Innovation Fund, Board President of AVAC (AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition), President of Sofinnova Ventures, Advisor to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Strategic Advisor to One World Health, Advisor to U Minnesota CDP (Committee for Pharmaceutical Development), Editorial Board Member of J. Pharm. Sci., Editorial Board Member of Crit. Rev. Ther. Drug Carrier Sys., Member of UC Davis Dean's Advisory Board, Scientific Advisor to CRS (Controlled Release Society), President of the University of Toronto Chemistry Club.
Focus on board roles and mentorship, with duties in CMC, clinical design, and clinical enrollment.
Omega Funds creates and invests in life science companies that target the world's unmet medical needs, with the goal of delivering impactful medicines to patients. The Omega Investment team is comprised of highly technical investors, both in US and EU, with a focus on biotech companies, both platform, and clinic drug development. Offices in Boston, MA and Geneva, Switzerland.
Sofinnova Investments specializes in clinical and late preclinical investments in pharmaceutical products. The Sofinnova team of investors consists of PhDs and MDs with significant scientific, operational, and strategic experience in this highly technical field of drug development; team members provide a deeper level of operational and technical expertise, as each person on the team has developed drugs, many with decades of experience. Office in Menlo Park, CA. (Raised >$2.5B for Sofinnova Funds IV-X. Active participation on 40 different biotech company boards from 1997-2021; Chair or Lead Board Member on 11).
The Pharm R&D group was responsible for all formulation development at Genentech, including small molecules, peptides, growth factors, antibodies, and other proteins. Expertise in this group included adjuvant design, microsphere directed sustained drug delivery, pulmonary drug delivery, intracranial drug delivery, needle-free injector systems, novel excipient studies, as well as drug stability and formulation design (32 Journal publications in formulation and drug delivery).
Cytel was founded by San Diego entrepreneur, Ted Greene, and world reknown researcher, Howard Grey, who pioneered much of the peptide binding studies to Class I and II HLA molecules. As one of the initial hires (Cytel Research Notebook #1) we built research and development programs to develop immunomodulators, or drugs that fight disease by mobilizing or blocking the body's immune responses, specifically by blocking HLA/MHC. The company enjoyed significant success, as it went from start-up to a Nasdaq-listed company in approximately 4 years, and with only a single round of venture capital (8 Journal publications in immunology).