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Our Leadership

AltruBio’s senior management is built on a team of individuals possessing strong academic knowledge, high-level managerial experience and scientific expertise in a range of fields including life science, pharmacology, healthcare and immunology.

Senior Management Board Of Directors Scientific and Clinical Advisors

Judy Chou, Ph.D. President and Chief Executive Officer, Chairperson of AltruBio Taiwan Inc.: Dr. Judy Chou is the CEO, President and Board member of AltruBio, Inc. which is a clinical stage biotech company in San Francisco, CA, and the Chairperson of AltruBio Taiwan, Inc. Before taking on her current roles, she headed the global Biotech organization at Bayer Pharmaceuticals overseeing the development, manufacturing and distribution of Bayer’s biotechnology product portfolio & 2000+ employees and leading the drug development and launch activities for biologics pipeline. In addition, she served as the site head for Bayer’s facility in Berkeley, CA. She is well recognized by the biomedical industry for her leadership and has received the Most Influential Women in Business Award in 2018 by San Francisco Business Times. Before Bayer, Dr. Chou held the role of Vice President of Pharmaceutical Operations at Pfizer, Inc. where she led the Development and Manufacturing organizations for both biologics and small molecule products. She was also Vice President of R&D and Manufacturing at Tanvex Biopharma and has enabled the success of the company’s IPO. Throughout Dr. Chou’s career, she has achieved significant milestones in biologics development and multiple filings of BLAs, NDAs, and INDs of novel products and is broadly recognized for her work at Genentech, Pfizer (Wyeth) and Abbvie (Abbott) especially in the development of breakthrough technologies and accelerated product development. Currently, Dr. Chou also serves as the Board of Directors of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. and California Institute of Regenerative Medicines (CIRM); and Advisory Board members of UC, Berkeley Engineering School, Silicon Valley Women in Engineering, AIxMED, Inc., Bio Taiwan Committee (BTC), and Translational Research Center of Academia Sinica. Before joining the industry, Dr. Chou was a research faculty member at Harvard University Medical School. Dr. Chou obtained her Ph.D. from Yale University and completed her post-doctoral training at Max-Planck Institute in Germany.

Jeroen Grasman Chief Financial Officer: Jeroen is a passionate and enthusiastic leader who thrives in fast-paced growth organizations. With nearly two decades of experience in healthcare finance, Jeroen began his career at Genentech and Roche, where he held roles including head of finance for global biologics manufacturing, head of portfolio finance, and head of strategic planning. Before joining AltruBio, he served as an executive leader with broad responsibilities across finance, IT, procurement, and fundraising at Intarcia Therapeutics and PACT Pharma, where he supported the raise of a $90M series C and a significant industry partnership. Jeroen holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a MSc in Applied Mathematics from Groningen University in the Netherlands.

Ping-Yang, Yeh, Ph.D. President of AltruBio Taiwan Inc.: Dr. Yeh is currently the President of AltruBio Taiwan. He brings over 26 years of biopharmaceutical experiences to AltruBio. Prior to joining AltruBio, he was Chief Technology Officer and Vice President at EirGenix, Inc., Taiwan, from 2019-2021. From 2011-2019, Dr. Yeh held the position of Executive Director, Process Development, Amgen, based at Thousand Oaks, CA, USA. Prior to Amgen, he held increased responsibility in managerial and technical leadership in biopharmaceutical development and operation at Biogen (2006-2011), Cambridge, MA, USA, and GlaxoSmithKline (1995-2006), Upper Merion, PA, USA. During his industrial tenure, Dr. Yeh has engaged and involved with the discovery, development and commercialization of a diverse set of therapeutic modalities (both biologics and synthetics) in molecular design, molecule assessment, process and product development and manufacturing, technology platform, and product life cycle management. He has contributed to the launch of 17 commercial products and engaged with 45+ IND/INDa filings. Dr. Yeh received his Ph.D. in Pharmaceutics and Pharmaceutical Chemistry under Professor Jindrich Kopecek, a pioneer in polymeric drug delivery system, and M.S. in Material Sciences and Engineering under Professor Joseph Andrade, a pioneer in biomedical polymers, both from The University of Utah in Salt Lake City, UT, USA. He received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Tamkang University in Taiwan.

Gene Lee, Ph.D. Chief Technical Officer: Gene Lee joined AltruBio in April 2021 as Vice President of Technical Development and was appointed Chief Technical Officer in April 2022. Prior to joining AltruBio, Gene served as Senior Director of Protein and Cell Sciences at EMD Serono, where he helped build an organization focused on the discovery and development of biologics and the transition of the pipeline to manufacturing. He also served as the US site head for the Discovery and Development Technologies function at EMD Serono. He previously served as the Director of Cell Line Development at Percivia, and worked at Wyeth BioPharma/Genetics Institute, where he contributed to a number of INDs and helped advance the state of cell line technology and early process development. Gene received his B.S. in Biology from Carnegie-Mellon University, and his Ph.D. in Microbiology from NYU School of Medicine. He completed his post-doctoral training at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA.

Shih-Yao Lin, MD., Ph.D. Vice President of Research: Prior to joining AltruBio, Dr. Lin was a research fellow (1998-2004) at Laboratory of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Experimental Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, USA. Dr. Lin received his MD degree from School of Medicine, National Taiwan University, and completed the resident training at the Department of Laboratory Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital. He also received the PhD degree (Immunology) from Centre d'Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy, University of Aix-Marseille II in Marseille, France.

Leewen Lin, Ph.D., LL.M. Vice President of Legal Affairs: Prior to AltruBio, Dr. Lin had been Senior Staff Fellow in Center of Biologics Evaluation and Research, US Food and Drug Administration, Director of Biotechnology Development Program of Yung-Shin Pharmaceutical, and Vice President of BioTrust International Corporation. Dr. Lin had been a member of the Intellectual Property Committee of Academia Sinica, and served as an advisor to the Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Promotion Group, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Taiwan, on legal and regulatory affairs. Dr. Lin received her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from North Carolina State University, and obtained her postdoctoral training in Genetics and Molecular Biology in Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. In addition, she received her L.L.M at Soochow University Law School, Taipei, Taiwan.

Simona Reed, Ph.D. Vice President of Clinical Program Management: Prior to joining AltruBio Dr. Reed was a senior consultant at Genentech’s Pharma Technical Regulatory with the responsibilities in the global regulatory affairs of the marketed products lifecycle and portfolio management. Before that, Dr. Reed lead the Corporate Project Management and clinical operations at Tanvex BioPharma, and successfully directed several preclinical and clinical programs of the biosimilar product . Prior to that she was the regional commercial product launch manager at Teva/Allergan where she was responsible for the global product launch portfolio of over 100 generic products. Dr. Reed has commenced her career in the industry as a consultant at Washington Group International (London UK / Princeton NJ) where she managed number of projects for several global pharmaceutical companies, e.g. Grifols Los Angeles, CA, CSL Behring, Kankakee, IL, Bayer, Raleigh, NC, Gedeon Richter, Budapest, Hungary, Pfizer, Ringaskidy Ireland, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bracknell, UK. Dr. Reed received her PhD degree in Enzyme Histochemistry from the Institute of Experimental Medicine, Czech Academy of Science in Prague, Czechia.

Adrian Serone, Ph.D. Vice President of Corporate Program Lead: Dr. Adrian Serone PhD is a distinguished drug developer and leader in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors, renowned for his strategic and collaborative approach to advancing complex drug discovery and development programs. He currently serves as Vice President, Corporate Program Lead at AltruBio, Inc. Prior to his current role, Adrian held several impactful positions at leading pharmaceutical companies including Calico Life Sciences LLC, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., Gilead Sciences, Genentech, and GlaxoSmithKline. At Calico, he was a Senior Director Project Team Leader overseeing the development and execution of strategies for discovery and clinical stage projects, particularly in neurodegeneration and rare diseases. At Gilead Sciences, he was integral to the advancement of innovative early development programs in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Adrian holds a PhD in Pharmacology from the University of Melbourne. He has authored numerous scientific publications, contributing valuable research to the fields of inflammatory diseases, pharmacology, and drug development. With a reputation for mentorship, cross-functional team leadership, and scientific interpretation, Adrian continues to be a leading figure in shaping the future of pharmaceutical development, dedicated to improving health outcomes through innovative research and collaboration.

Edwin Powers Vice President of Business Strategy and Development: Edwin Powers is currently the Vice President of Business Strategy and Development of AltruBio. He joined the company in 2020 and has held several positions of increasing scope and responsibility. Prior to his role at AltruBio, Edwin worked at Bayer as the Chief of Staff to the Global Head of Biotech leading efforts in strategy, organizational design, and external engagement in the Bay Area. He also worked in Strategy and Business Consulting as an Engagement Manager during his time at Bayer. Prior to joining Bayer, Edwin worked in Commercial Planning at Gilead Sciences and as a BioProcess Engineer at Genzyme. Edwin holds an MBA from Columbia Business School as well as an M.S. in Chemical & Biological Engineering from Tufts University and a B.S. in Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering from Johns Hopkins University.

Stephen G. Juelsgaard, D.V.M., J.D. Chairperson of the Board: Stephen (“Steve”) Juelsgaard, is a former executive vice president, secretary and chief compliance officer of Genentech, Inc. He reported to Genentech’s CEO and was responsible for Genentech’s Corporate Law, Intellectual Property, Government Affairs (Federal and State), Human Resources, and Healthcare Compliance groups, as well as the Business Services group, which included Strategic Facilities Planning, Corporate Security, Business Continuity, and Environment, Health & Safety. He also chaired Genentech’s Capital Governance Committee, which oversaw major capital expenditures at the company and was a member of Genentech’s Executive Committee, the most senior management committee at the company. He served as secretary to Genentech’s Board of Directors and each of the Board’s Committees from 1997 to 2009. Dr. Juelsgaard’s career at Genentech spanned 24 years. He joined Genentech in 1985 as corporate counsel and became senior corporate counsel in 1989. In 1992 he became vice president, Corporate Law and in 1994 was named general counsel, a role he served in through 2007. He was named a senior vice president in 1998. In 2002, he was appointed executive vice president and in 2005 was named chief compliance officer. He was the company’s representative on the board of directors of the California Healthcare Institute from 2005 until 2009. He left Genentech in 2009 when it became a wholly owned subsidiary of Roche. Prior to joining Genentech, he was an associate for three years with the law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati in Palo Alto, California. Prior to attending law school, he was engaged for three years in a private veterinary medical (equine) practice in Southern California. He is a member of the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee (board of directors) of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine where he also is the chairman of the ICOC’s Intellectual Property and Industry Subcommittee and serves on the Application Review, Finance and Governance Subcommittees. He is also on the board of directors of Juvena Therapeutics and of the African Wildlife Foundation. Dr. Juelsgaard received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Iowa State University in 1972 and a Masters of Science degree in Veterinary Clinical Sciences in 1975 from Iowa State University where his research was focused on immunology. In 1982 he received a law degree from Stanford Law School.

Sean P. Bohen, M.D., Ph.D.: Dr. Sean Bohen is Preseident and Chief Executive Officer of Olema Oncology. Prior to joining Olema in 2021, he was executive vice president of global medicines development and chief medical officer at AstraZeneca from 2015 to 2019. He was responsible for AstraZeneca’s worldwide product development and clinical programs to address unmet medical needs and renew AstraZeneca's product pipeline. Prior to joining AstraZeneca, he was Senior Vice President of Genentech Early Development from January, 2011. Dr. Bohen’s career at Genentech spanned 12 years. He joined Genentech in 2003 as Assistant Medical Director, Rituxan Heme/Onc. He was Associate Medical Director of Oncology Exploratory Clinical Development in 2004 and became Medical Director in 2005, then Associate Director in April, 2006. In October, 2006, he was Director of ITGR Exploratory Clinical Development and was promoted to Senior Director in October, 2007, then to Vice President of Immunology Development in August, 2008. In addition, Dr. Bohen also was an Adjunct Clinical Instructor in Oncology at Stanford University School of Medicine from 2002 to 2011. He received his Bachelor of Science (Bacteriology) from University of Wisconsin-Madison, and M.D. and Ph.D. in Biochemistry from University of California, San Francisco.

Judy Chou, Ph.D. President and Chief Executive Officer, Chairperson of AltruBio Taiwan Inc.: Dr. Judy Chou is the CEO, President and Board member of AltruBio, Inc. which is a clinical stage biotech company in San Francisco, CA, and the Chairperson of AltruBio Taiwan, Inc. Before taking on her current roles, she headed the global Biotech organization at Bayer Pharmaceuticals overseeing the development, manufacturing and distribution of Bayer’s biotechnology product portfolio & 2000+ employees and leading the drug development and launch activities for biologics pipeline. In addition, she served as the site head for Bayer’s facility in Berkeley, CA. She is well recognized by the biomedical industry for her leadership and has received the Most Influential Women in Business Award in 2018 by San Francisco Business Times. Before Bayer, Dr. Chou held the role of Vice President of Pharmaceutical Operations at Pfizer, Inc. where she led the Development and Manufacturing organizations for both biologics and small molecule products. She was also Vice President of R&D and Manufacturing at Tanvex Biopharma and has enabled the success of the company’s IPO. Throughout Dr. Chou’s career, she has achieved significant milestones in biologics development and multiple filings of BLAs, NDAs, and INDs of novel products and is broadly recognized for her work at Genentech, Pfizer (Wyeth) and Abbvie (Abbott) especially in the development of breakthrough technologies and accelerated product development. Currently, Dr. Chou also serves as the Board of Directors of Akero Therapeutics, Inc. and California Institute of Regenerative Medicines (CIRM); and Advisory Board members of UC, Berkeley Engineering School, Silicon Valley Women in Engineering, AIxMED, Inc., Bio Taiwan Committee (BTC), and Translational Research Center of Academia Sinica. Before joining the industry, Dr. Chou was a research faculty member at Harvard University Medical School. Dr. Chou obtained her Ph.D. from Yale University and completed her post-doctoral training at Max-Planck Institute in Germany.

Tomer Berkovitz, PhD: Tomer Berkovitz, PhD, is a Managing Partner at aMoon, a global HealthTech fund. Dr. Berkovitz has led investments and served on the board of directors of several public and private HealthTech companies. Prior to joining aMoon in 2018, he was COO and CFO for Alcobra, a NASDAQ-traded biopharmaceutical company. Prior to Alcobra, he was an Executive Director at JP Morgan in their Investment Banking division in New York. Dr. Berkovitz holds a Ph.D. in Finance from Columbia Business School.

John Doyle: John Doyle is chief financial officer of Aledade, Inc., a privately-held, health care technology business that sustains physician independence through value-based care. Previously, John was chief executive officer and a member of the board of directors at Castlight Health, a publicly-held healthcare technology company, which he joined in 2012 as its chief financial officer. Prior to Castlight, John spent more than 20 years primarily in the biotechnology industry where he had most recently been the chief operating officer and then a member of the board of directors at Achaogen, a publicly-held firm focused on the development of life-saving antibiotics. Prior to Achaogen, John was vice president of business finance and corporate planning at Genentech. John holds an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley, and received his undergraduate degree from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. He is a member of the 2012 Class of Henry Crown Fellows at the Aspen Institute.

Corsee Sanders, Ph.D.: Corsee D. Sanders, Ph.D., was most recently the Strategic Advisor to the Celgene Office of the Chief Medical Officer. She was on the Executive Committee of Juno Therapeutics from January 2017 up to its acquisition by Celgene in 2018, reporting to the CEO and accountable for Quantitative Sciences, Project Leadership, Development Operations, and CAR T Patient Operations. Prior to Juno, Dr. Sanders spent 7 years with Roche Pharmaceuticals in various roles, including Global Head of Biometrics, Global Head of Clinical Operations, and Global Head of Industry Collaborations. She was a member of the Late Stage Portfolio Committee, Co-chair of the Roche-Chugai Joint Portfolio Management Committee, and Vice-chair of the Board of Directors of TransCelerate Inc., on behalf of Roche. She spent 15 years with Genentech, Inc., prior to its acquisition by Roche, leading functions including Clinical and Nonclinical Biostatistics, Health Economics, Epidemiology, Real World Evidence, Business and Data Operations. Prior to that, she was a Biostatistics leader with Schering-Plough in NJ, and Centocor, Inc. in Malvern, PA. She started her career as a statistician with the Technical Board for Agricultural Credit, an arm of the Presidential Committee on Agricultural Credit in the Philippines. Dr. Sanders holds Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in statistics from the University of the Philippines and a Ph.D. in Statistics from the Wharton Doctoral Programs of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Sanders is a member of the Board of Trustees at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and a board director of Molecular Templates, Legend Biotech, BeiGene and Ultragenyx.

Patrick Y. Yang, Ph.D.: Dr. Pat Yang is the executive vice chairman of National Resilience, Inc., a privately held biotech manufacturing technology company. Most recently, Dr. Yang worked at Juno Therapeutics in Seattle as Executive Vice President from September 2017 to January 2019. Previously, Dr. Yang was Roche’s Global Head of Technical Operations in Switzerland from 2009 to 2013. In this role, he was responsible for Roche’s biopharmaceutical process development, engineering, quality, technical regulatory, supply chain and manufacturing. Before that, he was executive vice president, Product Operations of Genentech, Inc. from 2003 to 2013. Prior to joining Genentech, Dr. Yang served for 11 years at Merck & Company in New Jersey in various leadership positions including vice president of Asia Pacific Operations and vice president of Global Supply Chain Management. Prior to joining Merck in 1992, Dr. Yang spent 12 years at General Electric, serving in several research, engineering, technology, and manufacturing leadership roles with increasing scope of responsibilities. Before GE, Dr. Yang spent five years in aerospace control systems research and development with Life Systems, Inc. Dr. Yang holds a Bachelor of Science from the National Chiao Tung University in Taiwan, a Master of Science from the University of Cincinnati, and a doctorate in engineering from Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. Dr. Yang is a member of Board of Directors for three public companies: Codexis, Sana Biotech, and PharmaEssentia. He also serves on the corporate boards of several private companies including Acepodia, Archigen Biotech, and Antheia. He previously served on the boards of two other public companies: Tesoro/Andeaver (2010-2018) and Celladon (2014-2016).

Vijay K Kuchroo, DVM, Ph.D., Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board Samuel L. Wasserstrom Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School Senior Scientist, Brigham and Women’s Hospital Investigator, Klarman Cell Observatory Founding Director, The Gene Lay Institute: Dr. Kuchroo is the Samuel L. Wasserstrom Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and a Senior Scientist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He is also the founding Director of The Gene Lay Institute, a Member of the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, and an investigator in the Klarman Cell Observatory. His research focuses on autoimmunity, particularly co-stimulation, the genetic basis of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, and multiple sclerosis (MS). His lab was the first to describe the TIM family of genes, identifying TIM3 as an inhibitory receptor on T cells, now targeted in cancer immunotherapy. Dr. Kuchroo’s research has contributed significantly to understanding the immune mechanisms driving MS. His efforts continue to pave the way for improved treatments and potential cures for autoimmune diseases. Dr. Kuchroo has published over 400 research articles, and he has received several prestigious awards, including the National Institutes of Health Javits Investigator Award, the Dr. William E. Paul Distinguished Innovator Award from the Lupus Research Alliance, and the Dystel Prize for MS Research from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. In 2021, he was named a Distinguished Fellow by the American Association of Immunologists, recognizing his pioneering work in T cell biology and CNS autoimmunity.

Fu-Tong Liu, M.D., Ph.D. Professor of Clinical Dermatology, University Southern California.: Dr. Fu-Tong Liu is Professor of Clinical Dermatology, University Southern California. He is internationally known as a pioneer and leading investigator in the studies of the galectin family of animal lectins. His research contributed to the initial discovery and naming of this family and has been focused on their roles in the immune and inflammatory responses. Dr. Liu’s clinical expertise is medical dermatology, particularly autoimmune skin diseases. Dr. Liu was Distinguished Professor and Chair of Dermatology at University of California-Davis, Distinguished Research Fellow and Director of Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taiwan, and Vice President of Academia Sinica. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, an academician of Academia Sinica, and a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors.

Bernard Malissen, Ph.D. Founder and Director, the immunophenomics Center (CIPHE, INSERN-CNRS): Dr. Malissen, founder and director of the Centre for Immunophenomics (CIPHE, INSERM-CNRS) and former Director of the Center for Immunology at Marseille-Luminy (CIML), is a pioneering immunologist renowned for his groundbreaking work in T cell receptor (TCR) biology and immune system signaling. He was the first to use gene transfer approaches to dissect the function of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules and successfully reconstructed the TCR complex, providing key insights into its evolution and signalling mechanisms. Dr. Malissen also made significant contributions to understanding transplant rejection by elucidating the atomic structure of an alloreactive TCR complexed with its peptide-MHC ligand. Recently, he has applied "omic" approaches to map TCR signaling networks and better understand the fine-tuning of immune responses. With over 400 publications, Dr. Malissen is one of the most highly cited researchers in immunology. He has been awarded the INSERM Grand Prize and the Behring-Metchnikoff Immunology Prize, among other honors, and is a member of the French Academy of Sciences. Dr. Malissen holds a Doctor of Science degree from the University of Aix-Marseille.

Philip J. Mease, M.D. Director of the Rheumatology Research Division at Swedish Medical Center/ Providence St. Joseph Health Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle.: Philip J. Mease, MD, is Director of the Rheumatology Research Division at Swedish Medical Center/ Providence St. Joseph Health and Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle. He received his medical degree from Stanford University in California before completing a residency in Internal Medicine and a fellowship in Rheumatology at the University of Washington. Dr. Mease’s major research interests include psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and spondyloarthritis (SpA). His work includes research on disease state, development of outcome measures, and determining the efficacy and safety of emerging therapies for these conditions. Dr. Mease has authored more than 450 journal articles, numerous abstracts, and book chapters. He is Past President, Founding Organizer, and current Treasurer of the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis, and he is member of its Collaborative Research Network Steering Committee. Dr. Mease is a member of the Assessment of Spondyloarthritis International Society and the Spondyloarthritis Research and Treatment Network. He is active in the Outcome Measures in Rheumatology Clinical Trials organization as Co-Chair of the PsA and Chronic Pain Working Groups and is a steering committee member. Dr. Mease is the Scientific Director of the PsA and SpA arms of the Consortium of Rheumatology Researchers of North America registry.

Walter Reinisch, M.D. Director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Study Group, Medical University of Vienna: Dr Walter Reinisch is the Director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Study Group at the Medical University of Vienna in Vienna, Austria. He is a founding member of the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation (ECCO) and was assigned as honorary member after having contributed in various positions. He was an active member in the Scientific and Public Affairs Committee of the United European Gastroenterology (UEG) and has headed the Austrian Inflammatory Bowel Disease Study Group. Dr. Reinisch is also a member of the International Organization for the Study of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IOIBD) and an appointed chair of the endpoint cluster. Previously, he held the Audrey Campbell Chair in UC Research at McMaster University, Ontario, Canada from 2013 to 2016. Dr. Reinisch has >420 publications on IBD.

David T. Rubin, MD, AGAF, FACG, FASGE, FACP Joseph B. Kirsner Professor of Medicine at University of Chicago: Professor Rubin is a renowned gastroenterologist who specializes in the treatment and assessment of digestive diseases. He is the Joseph B. Kirsner Professor of Medicine at the University of Chicago, where he is also Chief of the Section of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, and co-director of the Digestive Diseases Center. His clinical expertise includes inflammatory bowel diseases (Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis) and high-risk cancer syndromes. Dr. Rubin received his Doctor of Medicine degree from the Pritzker School of Medicine, and did his residency and fellowship work at the University of Chicago. He also completed a fellowship at the University of Chicago MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics.

Arlene Sharpe, M.D., Ph.D. Kolokotrones University Professor, Harvard University Chair of the Department of Immunology, Harvard Medical School Vice Director, the Gene Lay Institute: Dr. Arlene Sharpe is the Kolokotrones University Professor at Harvard University, Chair of the Department of Immunology at Harvard Medical School, and Vice Director of the Gene Lay Institute. She is a leader in cancer immunology, and an authority on T cell co-stimulation. Her groundbreaking research helped uncover the functions of key immunoinhibitory pathways, including PD-1 and CTLA-4, laying the foundation for immune checkpoint blockade therapies. Her discoveries enabled the development of therapies like pembrolizumab and nivolumab. In addition to her role at Harvard, Dr. Sharpe serves as a Member of the Department of Pathology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, as well as the Leader of the Cancer Immunology Program at Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center. She has published over 400 papers and is consistently ranked among the one of the most highly cited researchers in immunology. Her numerous awards include the William B. Coley Award, Warren Alpert Foundation Prize, FASEB Excellence in Science Lifetime Achievement Award, AAI Lifetime Achievement Award the Harrington Prize for Innovation in Medicine, and the David and Beatrix Hamburg Award for Advances in Biomedical Research and Clinical Medicine from the National Academy of Medicine. Dr. Sharpe is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Medicine, and American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She earned her M.D. and Ph.D. from Harvard Medical School and completed her residency in Pathology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.