Our Teams

Douglas E. Williams, Ph.D., is currently the President of Research and Development at Sana Biotechnology. He was previously CEO of Codiak BioSciences, prior to which he was Biogen’s Executive Vice President, Research and Development, serving in this role from January 2011 to July 2015. He joined Biogen from ZymoGenetics, where he was most recently CEO and member of the Board of Directors. ZymoGenetics was purchased for $985 million by Bristol Myers Squibb during Dr. Williams’ tenure.

Previously, he held leadership positions within the biotechnology industry, including Chief Scientific Officer and Executive Vice President of Research and Development at Seattle Genetics, and Senior Vice President and Washington Site Leader at Amgen. Dr. Williams served in a series of scientific and senior leadership positions over a decade at Immunex, including Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer and a member of the Board of Directors. During his 30+ year career in the biotechnology industry he has played a role in the development of several novel drugs including Enbrel, Tecfidera, and Spinraza. He has served on the board of numerous biotechnology companies and is currently Chair of the Board of AC Immune.

Prof. Andrea Pfeifer co-founded AC Immune SA in 2003, successfully leading it to an IPO in 2016, since when she has served as a Director on the Board. Under her leadership, multiple transformative partnerships have been established with leading pharmaceutical companies, yielding a potential value of up to CHF 3.3 billion plus additional royalties.

Before founding the Company, she was the Head of Nestlé Research Centre in Lausanne, Switzerland where she played a major role in connecting science and business. Whilst at Nestlé she led the scientific development of a number of highly innovative, critically acclaimed products from laboratory to market, established the microbiome as a major cross-category product development platform and co-founded the Life Science focused Nestlé Venture Capital Fund.

Prior to this she was a Visiting Fellow at the Human Carcinogenesis Branch of The National Institute of Health, Bethesda, USA. She currently serves as the Chair of Investment Fund BioMedInvest, Basel and AB2 Bio SA, Lausanne, and is a member of the Supervisory Board of Symrise AG, Holzminden, Germany. She is also a key member of the CEOi initiative on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative (DAC). In 2021, she was awarded the first SEF.WomenAward for CEO of the Year by the Swiss Economic Forum.

Prof. Pfeifer holds a Ph.D. in Toxicology (Cancer Research) from the University of Würzburg, Germany and is a registered Toxicologist and Pharmacist. She received her Habilitation from the University of Lausanne, Switzerland and is an Honorary Professor at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL).

Prof. June is Richard W. Vague Professor in Immunotherapy, Director of the Center for Cellular Immunotherapies and Director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Due to his lifelong work on lymphocyte activation, Prof. June is considered a world authority on mechanisms related to immune tolerance and adoptive immunotherapy in the fields of chronic inflammation and cancer. He and his team pioneered the groundbreaking work in immunotherapy in which patients with refractory and relapsed chronic lymphocytic leukemia are treated with genetically engineered versions of their own T cells. This CAR-T therapy approach, which trains the immune system to attack and destroy cancer cells, has opened a new era of innovative treatments and personalized medicine for cancer patients.

Prof. June is a graduate of the Naval Academy in Annapolis, USA, and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, USA, where he received his medical degree. Prof. June also completed graduate training in immunology and malaria with Dr. Paul-Henri Lambert at the World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, and post-doctoral training in transplantation biology with E. Donnell Thomas and John Hansen at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, USA. He has published more than 500 manuscripts and is the recipient of numerous honors and prizes.

Dr. Monica Shaw is a pharmaceutical industry expert who has held senior leadership positions and was involved in advancing more than 15 therapeutic products from first-in-human studies through regulatory approvals and commercialization across multiple geographies. She also played key business development roles in company acquisition and integration and co-development partnerships. Through her work, Dr. Shaw gained extensive specialty experience in the fields of dermatology, immuno-inflammation, HIV, neurology, and oncology.

Currently, Dr Shaw is Senior Vice President, Head of Major Markets at Bristol Myers Squibb. Prior to this she was CEO for Oncopeptides a Swedish listed biotech company and before that, Executive Vice President Head Region Europe, Canada, Australia, for Leo Pharma. In addition, she has previously held broad leadership roles at other leading pharmaceutical companies, including as Vice President Commercial Head Asia Pacific region at GSK/ViiV Healthcare, and Medical Director and Chief Scientific Officer UK for Novartis, in addition to previous leadership positions at Norgine, Shire and Merck KGaA.

Prof. Monika Bütler is a leading Swiss economist and former Vice President of the independent Swiss Covid-19 Science Taskforce. She is a member of the Board of Directors and the audit committees of both Schindler Holding AG and Swiss Life Holding AG. Prof. Bütler is also a member of the Board of Directors of Huber & Suhner AG, where she chairs the nomination and remuneration committee. Her international economic expertise is in public policy and managerial economics, including an advisory role to the World Bank and work in the U.S. and Europe. Prof. Bütler is a Vice President of the Foundation Board of the Gebert Rüf Foundation, a science and innovation foundation that supports entrepreneurial projects which are committed to achieving an impact.

Prof. Bütler holds a Doctorate in Economics from the University of St. Gallen, a Doctorate Honoris Causa from the University of Lucerne, and a Diploma in Mathematics/Physics from the University of Zurich.

Dr. Twyman is a neurologist and currently CEO and founder, Amron Neuroscience, LLC, a private consulting company focused on neuroscience drug development. Prior to this, Dr. Twyman spent almost 20 years at Janssen Research & Development, LLC (a Johnson & Johnson company) and was a member of the Neuroscience Therapeutic Area Leadership team responsible for clinical R&D and strategic planning of CNS neurology and psychiatry pipeline products. From 2012 to March 2018, he was a Senior Vice President in the Neuroscience Therapeutic Area overseeing the Alzheimer’s Disease Area. He currently participates as an independent board member or as a scientific advisory board member for a number of small biotech or pharmaceutical companies.

Dr. Werner Lanthaler is the managing director of W.Lan Holding GmbH, an advisory and investment firm. Up to January 2024, he was the CEO of Evotec AG, a drug discovery alliance and development partnership company focused on rapidly progressing innovative product approaches with leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, academics, patient advocacy groups and venture capitalists. Dr. Lanthaler focused the company on collaborating with biotech and pharma companies and academia, supporting biotech innovation. He previously served as Chief Financial Officer at Intercell AG where he played a key role in many of that company’s major milestones. During his tenure, Intercell undertook an IPO and developed from a venture-backed biotechnology company into a global vaccine player. Dr. Lanthaler has also served as Director of the Federation of Austrian Industry, and from 1995 to 1998 was a Senior Management Consultant at McKinsey & Company. Dr. Lanthaler is a Non-Executive Member of the Board of Directors of arGEN-X and is a member of the Supervisory Board of Topas Therapeutics GmbH. He holds a Doctorate in Economics from Vienna University, a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Harvard University, and a degree in Psychology.

Dr. Lehn is Professor of Molecular Chemistry at the Collège de France in Paris, and the author of more than 700 scientific publications. He is a specialist of “Supra-Molecular-Chemistry”. In 1968 he gained international recognition for the Synthesis of Cryptands, molecules that “capture” ions to create new chemical compounds. Prof. Lehn received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1987.

Dr. Voisin started Voisin Consulting active in integrated drug development and strategic planning in both Europe and the USA in 1997. Her background in academic research was acquired in the U.S. at the NIH, in the Neuroscience Branch, and in France with national research units, CNRS and INSERM. Dr. Voisin obtained her Ph.D. in Pharmacology at Institut Gustave Roussy, France. Dr. Voisin is a member of Regulatory Affairs Professionals Society (RAPS).

Dr. Rosenberg is Dean of Tufts’ University Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy and the Jean Mayer Professor of Nutrition. Dr. Rosenberg’s research focuses on the investigation of folate metabolism, with a special emphasis on nutritional factors involved in maintenance of cognitive function and the brain. He has recently been awarded a Commissioner’s Special Citation by the FDA for his career-long advocacy for accurate nutrition and health information.

Dr. van Leuven is Professor at the Catholic University of Leuven, faculty of medicine. He received his Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Ghent. Prof. van Leuven is well-known for his work on neurodegenerative diseases and transgenic animals, in particular for developing several transgenic mice that are models for the amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles of Alzheimer’s disease. He is co-founder of the KULeuven spin-off reMYND nv, a privately owned biotech company dedicated to the development and exploitation of pre-clinical mouse and yeast models for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

Dr. Lindberg was a member of the Board of Directors of the Nobel Foundation. He was secretary of the Medical Nobel Assembly at the Karoliska Institute. His career encompasses academic appointments at prestigious institutions like Karoliska Institute and Stanford University School of Medicine. He also held executive positions as Head of R&D, Chief Scientific Officer and Vice President in vaccine companies. He is a board member of several private and public biopharmaceutical companies.

Dr. Monsigny is Professor of Biochemistry at the University of Orléans, France. He is author or co-author of over 200 papers and of several patents. Prof. Monsigny’s area of research and expertise comprises the biochemistry of glycoconjugates and endogenous lectins including their chemical and cellular aspects. More recently, Prof. Monsigny has focused on gene therapy using synthetic carriers such as glycosylated cationic polypeptides and glycosylated polyethylenimines.

Dr. Nicolau is a Professor of Medicine at the Tufts University in Boston, U.S.A. Prof. Nicolau’s main area of work is the study of membrane involvement in pharmacological processes at the molecular level. For several years, Dr. Nicolau is working on an Immunotherapy for Alzheimer’s disease and other “conformational” disease. He has published more than 210 scientific papers and has been awarded 30 patents todate. Prof. Nicolau is one of the Founders of Alantos AG, Heidelberg and has been for two years CSO of that company.

Prof. Riesner has held the Chair of Biophysics at the Heinrich-Heine-University in Düsseldorf, Germany since 1980 and is Director of Technology at the University of Düsseldorf. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Braunschweig, Germany. Prof. Riesner is also a member of the Supervisory Board and a Director of Qiagen N.V., Netherlands.

Prof. Riesner is an honorary member of the Scientific Advisory Board.

Prof. Andreas U. Monsch studied clinical psychology, psychopathology, and neurophysiology at the University of Zurich (Switzerland) and received his doctorate in 1991. From 1991–1994, he worked at the University of California, San Diego (US), one of the best Alzheimer’ disease research centers in the world at the time. From 1994–2002, he was head of research at the Memory Clinic of the Geriatric University Hospital in Basel (Switzerland). In 2001 he received his habilitation and was promoted to Professor of Psychology at the University of Basel in 2003. Since 2002, he has been in charge of one of the largest memory clinics in Switzerland, which has relocated to the Felix Platter Hospital in 2016, Basel, and which is now called University Department of Geriatric Medicine Felix Platter. Prof. Monsch’s research and teaching focuses on “Early diagnosis of dementia” and “Rare causes of dementia”. He has published over 170 papers and book chapters.

Prof. Tariot is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Psychiatry with added qualifications in geriatrics. He was a Fellow at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH, US) Intramural Research Program, then served as a faculty member at the University of Rochester Medical Center and, since 2006, he has served as Director of the Banner Alzheimer’s Institute in Phoenix. He is also a Research Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. His work has focused on the care and study of people with, and at risk, of Alzheimer’s, with special emphasis on the design and implementation of clinical trials for prevention and treatment, development of biomarkers, and demonstration of effective dementia care. He has published over 350 papers on these topics including articles regarding studies that have led to FDA approval of new medications. He serves as co-director of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Initiative (API). His research affiliations include the National Institute on Aging (NIA), the NIMH, and the Alzheimer’s Association.

Prof. Murat Emre was born in 1956, in Eregli, Turkey. After studying medicine at the Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, which he graduated from in 1980, he was trained in neuroscience and clinical neurology at the University of Zürich 1981–1985. He then worked in the fields of neurorehabilitation and clinical research in Switzerland until 1996. During this time, he had two sabbaticals: he was trained in movement disorders with Prof. David Marsden at the Queen Square National Hospital for Nervous Diseases, London (UK) and in behavioral neurology with Prof. Marsel Mesulam at the Beth Israel Hospital and Harvard Medical School (US). In 1996 he was assigned as Professor of Neurology at the İstanbul Faculty of Medicine (Turkey) where he started the Behavioral Neurology and Movement Disorders Unit, which he chaired until 2011. He acted as Chairman of the Neurology Department in 2002–2003. In 2011 he retired from his position as full professor and was assigned as Adjunct Professor for Research. He was founding President of the Brain Research Society, the Alzheimer Society of Turkey and the Alzheimer Foundation and a past president of the Parkinson Society of Turkey. His areas of interest include movement disorders, in particular Parkinson’s disease and related disorders, especially cognitive aspects of the disease, as well as Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

Dr. Fortea is a behavioral neurologist and a dementia expert. He combines his research and clinical activities at the Hospital of Sant Pau in Barcelona (Spain) and the Catalan Foundation for Down Syndrome, where he is the director of the Alzheimer Down Unit. He leads the Down Alzheimer Barcelona Neuroimaging Initiative (DABNI), the largest single center cohort with multimodal biomarker studies to study Alzheimer´s disease pathophysiology in Down syndrome. He has extensive experience in clinical practice and in medical research, with a focus on the early diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases, Alzheimer’s disease and Down syndrome-related Alzheimer’s disease. His expertise is recognized internationally, as an active participant of the NIA-N Study section, National Institutes of Health (US), the International Scientific Committee of the Jerome Lejeune Foundation (France) as well as at the Clinical Research Committee from the Trisomy 21 Research Society and the Down Syndrome Professional Interest Area, Alzheimer’s Association (US). He is also the current Chair of the Behavioral Neurology and Dementia Study Group at the Spanish Neurological Society.

Dr. Reisa Sperling is a neurologist focused on the detection and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease at the pre-symptomatic or “preclinical” stage. Dr. Sperling is a Professor in Neurology at Harvard Medical School (US), and Director of the Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Sperling is the co-Principal Investigator of the Harvard Aging Brain Study, and the NIH funded Alzheimer Clinical Trial Consortium (ACTC). Dr. Sperling chaired the 2011 NIA-Alzheimer’s Association workgroup to develop guidelines for the study of “Preclinical Alzheimer’s disease”. She co-leads the Anti-Amyloid Treatment in Asymptomatic Alzheimer’s disease (A4) Study and is launching two new AD prevention trials (A3-45) with the ACTC in 2020. Dr. Sperling received the 2011 Derek Denny-Brown Award, the 2015 American Academy of Neurology Potamkin Prize, and was named one of the 2017 Most Disruptive Women to Watch in Healthcare.

Dr. Schneider is Professor of Psychiatry, Neurology, and Gerontology at the Keck School of Medicine and Leonard Davis School of Gerontology of the University of Southern California (US). He directs the USC State of California Alzheimer’s Disease Center, the clinical core of the USC National Institute on Aging Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, and the Geriatric Studies Center. He holds a Master’s degree in Biometry and Epidemiology and has expertise in clinical trials methods and drug development. His work involves treatment development with novel metabolic and neuroregenerative compounds, outcomes assessment, and approaches to modelling, clinical trials simulations, and, recently, in silico screening of medications for slowing Alzheimer’s disease. He is a Fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, and Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.