2019 Speakers
An outstanding Faculty of Speakers representing close to 35 Companies & Organizations. This page, in alphabetical order, will be updated regularly.
Gilles Avenard
Gilles Avenard, MD, is CEO at ACTICOR Biotech, Paris, France, and Board of Directors member or adviser for several companies through GABC, a strategic advisory firm for Biotech/Pharma Industry. Dr Avenard is the 2018 Biotechnology Entrepreneur-of-the-Year Awardee in France.
Olivier Blin
Olivier BLIN (MD, PhD, MBA), is Professor of Pharmacology at Aix-Marseille University, certified in Neurology, Psychiatry and Medical Biology. He is currently Head of the Clinical Pharmacology & Pharmacovigilance Department, Marseille University Hospital (Ap-Hm), member of UMR AMU-INSERM 1106, and coordinator of the University Hospital Federation DHUNE, COEN center on neurodegenerative disorders and aging. At the international level, he has been elected as a member of Innovative Medicines Initiative Scientific Council by the 28 EU members.
Jennifer Chase
Jennifer Chase is a Managing Director in the Life Sciences practice at WITT/KIEFFER, the preeminent Healthcare executive search firm in the Boston MA area. She has more than 25 years of experience in the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries.
Pravin Chaturvedi
Pravin Chaturvedi, PhD, is CEO of OCEANYX Pharmaceuticals and Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board for NAPO Pharmaceuticals, Woburn MA, USA. Dr Chaturvedi is the 2019 Summit GUEST CHAIR. He is widely recognized one of MA’s key opinion leaders in Biotechnology. He has developed over 7 new treatments in CNS, GI and viral diseases over his career.
Pierre Courteille
Pierre Courteille, PharmD, is Vice President of FRANCE BIOTECH, representing the country’s leading biotechnology organization based in Paris. Since 2015, he is Chief Commercial Officer and Vice President Business Development at ABIVAX. He holds a University of Chicago Booth School of Business MBA and has 25 years’ experience in GM/CO/BD and Marketing, within the pharmaceutical/biotech/medtech industries.
Horst Domdey
Horst Domdey, Professor of Biochemistry at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Germany. Since 1997 he has been the Managing Director of BioM, the cluster development and management organization of the Munich Biotech Cluster. Since 2006 he also manages the Bavarian Biotechnology Network.
Denis Gauvreau
Denis Gauvreau, PhD, is Director of Innovation and Business Development at Polytechnique Montréal, Canada. He has acted in turn as Founder, President-CEO, Executive Chairman, Chairman, Board Director, Counsel, or Seed Investor in over 20 early-stage companies in Canada and in France.
Shahin Gharakhanian
Shahin Gharakhanian, MD, DPH, specializes in Drug & Vaccine Clinical Development & Medical Affairs, based in the Cambridge Innovation Center. He has extensive track record in Pharmaceutical Medicine, Executive Leadership & Management. Dr Gharakhanian has led or managed projects for 12 different companies, ten brands in different geographies (Asia, Europe, USA) including four NDA/MAA/launches, most recently a 2011 “blockbuster” in the US.
John Hallinan
John Hallinan, BBA, CPA, joined MassBio: Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, Cambridge MA in 2012 as the Chief Business Officer and oversees the MassBio Innovation Services programs. His background encompasses venture financings, corporate development, technology licensing, and mergers and acquisitions.
Paul Hartung
Paul Hartung is representing Launchpad Ventures LLC of Boston (as a shareholder of Cognoptix). Longtime life sciences and technology executive with a proven track record in launching successful startup businesses and leading Fortune 500 organizations. In Cognoptix, as President & CEO he developed an innovative eye scan for early detection of Alzheimer’s disease.
Marion Hitchcock
Marion Hitchcock, PhD, is a Strategic Alliance Manager in BAYER AG, Open Innovation & Digital Sciences group, which serves Drug Discovery & Development in Bayer Pharma R&D. Based at Bayer’s East Coast Innovation Center in Cambridge/MA, Marion has spearheaded establishing Bayer’s new presence in Boston.
Philippe Jouvet
Philippe Jouvet, MD, PhD, is the Deputy Director of the Research Center and the Scientific Director of the Health Technology Assessment Unit of the Sainte Justine Hospital-University of Montreal. He currently conducts a research program on computerized decision support systems for health providers.
Sophie Kornowski
Dr. Sophie Kornowski joined Gurnet Point Capital in 2018 from Roche, a leading healthcare company based in Switzerland, where she was Executive Vice-President, global Head of Partnering. In this role, Dr. Kornowski developed and maintained over 200 external partnerships with research institutions, Biotech, Pharma and Healthcare Information Technology companies worldwide.
Nicola La Monica
Nicola La Monica, PhD, is Senior Director, Infectious Disease Scientific Innovation at Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of JOHNSON & JOHNSON, Boston MA. He joined the J&J Boston Innovation Center in 2013 as Senior Director of ID and Vaccines Scientific Innovation. He has managed research teams involved in anti-HCV research, cancer vaccines or cancer immunotherapy.
Cynthia “Cindy” Lander
Cindy Lander, PhD, is Founder, Chairman and CEO, Moerae Matrix, Inc. She has been a Partner in Nascent Enterprises, LLC, a venture catalyst partnership commercializing medical inventions, with 26 companies created to date with $millions raised and 12 exit transactions. She received her PhD in Neurosciences.
Lizabeth Leveille
Lizabeth Leveille, MS, MBA, is Associate Vice President and Head, BD&L Boston Innovation Hub, Merck Research Laboratories. Liz brings over 17 years industry experience and over the past 14 years has focused her work in business development at large pharmaceutical companies.
Maria Lopez-Bresnahan
Maria V Lopez-Bresnahan, MD, MBA, FAAN is Vice-President, Clinical Development, Neurology & Addiction ALKERMES, Inc.,Waltham MA, USA. She served previously at Vertex Pharmaceuticals as VP of Neurology Clinical Development and at Pfizer Inc. as Head of Neuromuscular Clinical Research in the Rare Disease Research Unit and as Therapeutic Area Head for Neuroscience in the Medicines Development Group leading drug development strategy and planning for neurology and psychiatry.
Gregory Mannix
Greg Mannix is Vice President of International Business Development at LSN: Life Science Nation, Boston MA, USA. Greg provides international early-stage companies with insight, tools and strategies to successfully fundraise and to facilitate cross-border investments, licensing and M&A transactions. He speaks English, Spanish and French.
Retsina Meyer
Retsina Meyer, PhD, is a neuroscientist-innovator-entrepreneur, Cambridge MA, USA. She founded Resilience Therapeutics, a drug development company advancing disease-modifying therapeutics for PTSD. She leverages her background in neuroscience, endocrinology, and business strategy to advance the field of personalized medicine in neurological disorders.
David Meek
David Meek was appointed CEO, and to the Board of Directors, of IPSEN in July 2016 (Paris, France & Cambridge MA, USA). He has 25 years of experience in major global executive positions in major companies: Johnson & Johnson, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Novartis, Endocyte, Baxalta. He is a former Officer of the United States Armed Forces.
Veronica Miller
Veronica Miller, PhD, is the Executive Director of the FORUM for Collaborative Research, Washington DC, a public/private partnership addressing cutting edge science and policy issues through a process of stakeholder engagement and deliberation. She is a leading expert in the process of engaging stakeholders from both sides of the Atlantic to resolve significant health policy and public health issues. Dr. Miller is an adjunct Professor at the University of California, Berkeley CA, School of Public Health.
Luis Montaner
Luis J. Montaner, DVM, Mphil, is Vice President, Scientific Operations, WISTAR Institute, Philadelphia PA, USA. Director, HIV-1 Immunopathogenesis Laboratory. Professor, Immunology & Metastasis Program. Associate Director for Shared Facilities, Wistar Cancer Center. Scientific Director, Biomedical Research Support Facility. Dr Montaner obtained his D.V.M., from Kansas State University, and his D.Phil. at University of Oxford, Oxford, U.K.
Michael Nowak
Michael J. Nowak, PhD, is CEO of Navan Technologies, Inc., South San Francisco, CA, USA, and Managing Partner, Nowak Ventures LLC, Wellesley MA, USA. He is an experienced healthcare and high tech investor in small cap public and venture-backed private companies. Dr Nowak holds an MBA from Wharton School, Philadelphia and PhD in Physics from University of California, post-doctoral work at CEA Research Laboratories Saclay (France). He is an Advisor to the German Accelerator Program in Life Sciences.
Stephan Ogenstad
Stephan Ogenstad, PhD, President of Statogen Consulting LLC, Wakefield NC, USA. Fmr. Advisor to Sweden’s Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology Committee. Dr. Ogenstad was the lead statistician to the filing of 13 NDA/BLA/IDE submissions in Europe, USA and Japan. Fmr. Chapter President American Statistical Association of NC. He is adjunct Professor of Biostatistics, Georgia Southern University, GA, USA.
Frederic E. “Rick” Pierce II
Frederic E. “Rick” Pierce II is Founder & Principal FEP Capital Advisors, Cambridge MA, NY, USA. Beijing & Shanghai, China. He has over 30 years of experience in equity capital markets, investment banking and building healthcare companies. Rick Pierce has been a Summit Speaker in 2017 in Paris and Member of the Organizing Committee in Boston, 2018.
Annika Pierson
Annika Pierson, M.A. COO, Advise Connect Inspire, LLC, Cambridge MA, USA. As Chief Operating Officer of ACI, she facilitates the successful US market entry of emerging companies from Europe and connects US-based startups with European investors and industry groups. Annika Pierson has formerly headed the innovation and entrepreneurship programs of Charité Foundation in Berlin, including the highly successful international healthcare industry conference, Charité Entrepreneurship Summit.
John Pottage
John Pottage, MD, (Chief Scientific and Medical Officer) oversees Global R&D, Regulatory, Safety and Medical Affairs at VIIV HEALTHCARE [a joint venture of GSK, Pfizer and Shionogi], Collegeville PA, USA. He is the former SVP, Infectious Diseases Medicine Development Centre for GSK. Before joining the pharmaceutical industry, Dr Pottage was Associate Professor of Internal Medicine in the Section of Infectious Diseases at Rush Medical College in Chicago IL, USA.
Bernard “Bernie” Rudnick
Bernard C. Rudnick is an Angel Investor & Business Strategist, Newark DE, USA. He is founder and Managing Partner of CapGenic Advisors, LLC & Founder, Mid Atlantic Bio Angels, and a member of several investment groups. With 36 years of experience in executive-level strategy, finance, and management, Mr. Rudnick has senior merger, acquisition, capital formation and licensing leadership experience with companies ranging from start-up to Fortune 50. He was recently instrumental in providing investors an average dividend (over $100 million) of 5 times invested capital while maintaining their stock positions. He is a founder of one of the nation’s leading entrepreneurial programs.
Christine Sarkisian
Christine Sarkisian is Trade Commissioner, Life Sciences Business Development at the Consulate General of Canada, Boston, and co-founder of the Canadian Technology Accelerator (CTA@Boston). She provides strategic advice and connections to Canadian biotech and medtech companies and researchers; mentoring and introductions to CTA@Boston ventures resident in a 4-month immersion program in the New England ecosystem. Her educational training has been at Lesley University and Harvard University in Boston MA.
Heather Steinman
Heather Steinman, Ph.D., MBA, is Vice President for Business Development and Executive Director of Technology Transfer at The WISTAR Institute, the nation’s first independent research institution devoted solely to biomedical science and a world leader in cancer, immunology, virology and infectious disease research. She is a Member of the Steering Committee of 2019 BIO Convention. Dr. Steinman brings more than 18 years of experience in technology transfer and commercialization of early stage-life science discoveries.
Pitch Session:Isoma Diagnostics, USA
Steve Davis is CEO of ISOMA Diagnostics, Philadelphia PA. ISOMA has developed a highly accurate Glioblastoma subtyping assay. ISOMA molecular stratification system uses the differential expression of key transcript variants (isoform-level gene expression) as a prognostic and diagnostic tool for Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM). Information: sdavis@isomadx.com. www.IsomaDx.com
Pitch Session: A2A pharma, USA
Elena Diez, PhD, Director of Business Development and R&D Strategy at A2A Pharmaceuticals, NYC, USA, representing Edward Painter, CEO. A2A: proprietary computational systems, including A.I., to accelerate development of novel drug alternatives for life threatening diseases including Bacterial Infections, Oncology, RareDiseases. ediez@a2apharma.net www.a2apharma.com
Pitch Session:Par'Immune France
Abderrahim LACHGAR, PharmD, CEO, PARIMMUNE, EuraSanté Bio-Incubator, Lille, FRANCE. Par’Immune is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company founded in 2017. Building upon 20 years of academic research & clinical activities around the parasite-derived P28GST protein. Information: a.lachgar@parimmune.com www.parimmune.com
Pitch Session: Versatope, USA
Christopher LOCHER, PhD, CEO of VERSATOPE Therapeutics, Inc, Lowell MA, USA. Versatope Therapeutics is using exosomes (extracellular vesicles) derived from genetically engineered probiotics as a technology platform for the targeted delivery of large molecules used in vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics. 2018 M2D2 Challenge finalist & JLabs Resident Company. Information: Christopher.locher@versatope.
Pitch Session: Virion Tx, USA
Andrew “Andy” LUBER, Pharm D, President & COO. VIRION Therapeutics™, DE, USA. is developing innovative immune-based treatments for virally induced cancers and for common chronic infectious diseases with unmet medical need using our proprietary platform technologies. Information: aluber@viriontx.com & Bernard Rudnick, CEO , www.viriontx.com
Pitch Session: Mag Optics, USA
Geeta SINGH, CEO of MAG OPTICS, Lowell MA/Chicago IL, USA. MAG Optics Inc. MAG Optics is an ophthalmic device innovator and has developed the world’s first patient-centric corneal shape changing platform. 2018 M2D2 Challenge finalist, JLAB Resident Company. Information: Geeta@magoptics.com www.magoptics.com.
