W. Nicholas Haining, BM, BCh
ArsenalBio
W. Nicholas Haining, BM, BCh, is chief scientific officer and co-founder of ArsenalBio. He is a physician-scientist, and prior to co-founding ArsenalBio, he was the vice president of discovery oncology and immunology at Merck Research Laboratories. Dr. Haining received his undergraduate and medical degree from Oxford University and completed his medical training in pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital, and subsequently in pediatric hematology/oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. As an associate professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and an associate member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, his lab defined some of the key transcriptional and epigenetic regulators of T cell exhaustion and used in vivo genetic screens to identify immune vulnerabilities of cancer cells in mouse models. He also led a multi-disciplinary organization at Merck that focused on using innovative approaches to identify new therapeutic strategies for cancer and immunological disease.
Susan Kaech, Ph.D.
Salk Institute for Biological Studies
Susan Kaech, Ph.D., is professor and director of the NOMIS Center for Immunobiology & Microbial Pathogenesis and holds the NOMIS Chair at the Salk Institute. Her work focuses on understanding how memory T cells are produced during infection and vaccination to provide long-term immunity and sometimes fail to do so. She is also a leader in field of cancer immunology and elucidating metabolic control of immune cells in cancer. She was previously a Waldemar Von Zedwitz Professor in the Department of Immunology at Yale University. She holds a Ph.D. in developmental biology from Stanford University and completed her postdoctoral fellowship in the department of microbiology and immunology at Emory University
Jeffrey Miller, M.D.
University of Minnesota
Jeffrey Miller, M.D., is professor of medicine, University of Minnesota and deputy director, Masonic Cancer Center and the Roger L. and Lynn C. Headrick Chair in cancer therapeutics. Dr. Miller has more than 25 years of experience studying the biology of natural killer (NK) cells and other immune effector cells and their use in clinical immunotherapy with over 300 peer-reviewed publications. After completing a post-doctoral fellowship in hematology, oncology and transplantation at the University of Minnesota, he joined the faculty in 1991. Previously, he completed an internship and residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. Dr. Miller received a BSc degree from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, US and received his M.D. from Northwestern University School of Medicine.
Aaron Ring, M.D., Ph.D.
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Aaron Ring, M.D., Ph.D., is the founder of Simcha Therapeutics and currently serves as associate professor and Anderson Family Chair for Immunotherapy at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. Prior to this, he was associate professor of immunobiology at Yale University. His research is focused on understanding and manipulating the communication circuitry of the immune system using precision immunopharmacology and systems immunology. His seminal work identifying the “jamming signal” called IL-18BP produced by tumors that prevents IL-18 binding and activation is the foundation of Simcha’s therapeutic approach. He holds M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Stanford University.
Emmett Schmidt, M.D., Ph.D.
Merck Research Labs
Emmett Schmidt, M.D., Ph.D., is vice president of early oncology development for Merck Research Labs where he oversees more than 46 company collaborations involving more than 95 clinical studies. He joined Merck in 2010 as a senior principal scientist and has continued to take on additional responsibilities in the development of oncology therapies. Prior to joining Merck, Dr. Schmidt was a professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Schmidt holds M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Duke University and earned a M.A in biology from Harvard University.
Mario Sznol, M.D.
Yale Cancer Center
Mario Sznol, M.D., professor of medicine and clinical research leader in the melanoma program and co-leader, cancer immunology program at Yale Cancer Center. Dr. Sznol conducts clinical research for melanoma and kidney cancer patients with a major focus on immunotherapies. Before joining Yale in 2004, Dr. Sznol served as vice president, clinical affairs of Vion Pharmaceuticals where he oversaw development of the company’s anticancer drug candidates. Prior to that, he served as head of the Biologics Evaluation Section, Investigational Drug Branch at the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Sznol earned a M.D. from Baylor College of Medicine and a B.S. in biochemistry from Rice University.
Sanuj Ravindran, M.D.
Chief Executive Officer
Sanuj has spent more than 20 years in strategic and operational roles across the life science industry, both as an investor and company builder. Most recently, he served as CEO-in-residence at BridgeBio (BBIO) where he was chief executive officer of PellePharm, and executive chair of Phoenix Tissue Repair. In these roles, Sanuj led both companies’ growth, directed strategy, secured significant partnerships, and advanced pipeline programs in oncology and rare skin diseases through mid- and late-stage clinical trials. Before this, he served as chief business officer at aTyr Pharma (LIFE), a clinical-stage protein therapeutics company focused on tRNA synthetases. Prior to that, Sanuj was senior vice president of corporate development at The Medicines Company (MDCO), where he led multiple transactions totaling more than $2 billion in potential value. Sanuj began his biotech career as a venture capitalist for 10 years with Burrill & Company, Radius Ventures, and Asian Healthcare Fund.
Sanuj was previously a practicing physician, board-certified in Internal Medicine, having completed his residency training at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. He received his bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University, his doctorate in medicine from Jefferson Medical College, and his master’s of business administration from the Kellogg School of Management.
Beatrice McQueen, Ph.D.
Chief Operating Officer
Beatrice has 20+ years of industry experience in research and development, operations, finance and business development. Beatrice was appointed a Simcha executive since its inception in 2018 accountable for all aspects of the company - G&A, Corporate Strategy and R&D, including manufacturing, preclinical & clinical development, regulatory and quality. Prior to Simcha, she served on the commercial team at PPD. Before PPD, Beatrice established and led Beatrice Perotti Inc in 2006, a consulting firm, full time for 12 years until 2017, providing consulting services to start ups and established biotech companies. Beatrice started consulting after 12 years of product development and finance experience in leadership positions in PKDM, product strategy/early development, strategic business operations and finance at Pfizer and Amgen.
Beatrice graduated with a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Chemistry - Pharmacokinetics & Drug Metabolism from the University of California, San Francisco, and an E.M.B.A. from UCLA Anderson School of Management. Beatrice also had a Project Management Certificate from CalTech and was an Amgen certified Six Sigma Black Belt.
Jeremy Barton, M.D.
Chief Medical Director
Jeremy Barton, M.D. has over 31 years of experience in all phases of oncology drug development in the pharmaceutical industry in Switzerland, UK and currently in the US. He is now working as a self-employed consultant, advising biotech companies on strategic oncology drug development.
Most recent industry responsibilities in the US have included Chief Medical Officer roles at Biogen Idec, eFFECTOR Therapeutics and Mirati Therapeutics. He was also head of early Oncology Development at Pfizer (San Diego) for 5 years overseeing the transition of all Oncology compounds from research through IND to proof-of-concept studies.
After obtaining a Master's Degree in Physiological Sciences from Oxford University and his medical degree at University College Hospital Medical School in London, he trained in Internal Medicine and Clinical Oncology in the United Kingdom and practiced for 11 years in the National Health Service.
Jeremy is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Clinical Oncology, a Member of the Royal College of Physicians (U.K.), a Fellow of the Royal College of Radiologists (Clinical Oncology) and a Member of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine.
Hirdesh Uppal, Ph.D.
Senior Vice President Translational Research and Development Sciences
Hirdesh possesses over two decades of drug development expertise, making significant contributions advancing medicines from discovery to regulatory approval. In his recent role as VP of Development Sciences at CytomX Inc., he managed a diverse portfolio encompassing antibodies, ADC’s, bispecifics, and cytokines. Prior to this, he served as VP of Development Sciences at Revolution Medicines Inc., concentrating on novel therapies targeting RAS-addicted cancers. At Medivation Inc., Hirdesh led Translational Medicine & Companion Diagnostics (CDx), involving the translational strategy & clinical development for enzalutamide (XTANDIâ), talazoparib (TALZENNAâ) and several other pipeline molecules. He invented & facilitated successful clinical biomarker work culminating in CDx development at partner firms. His earlier tenure at Genentech Inc. and F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd focused on development sciences and safety assessment where he provided leadership & strategic alignment of a safety biomarker, stem cell & biochemical-molecular toxicology investigative laboratory group. Hirdesh holds a Ph.D. in Pharmacology from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree, and a Master’s in Immunology from Punjab Agricultural University, India. Additionally, he has completed Executive Management programs at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Harvard Business School, and The Wharton School.
Mike Mangone, Ph.D.
Vice President Corporate Development
Mike has spent more than 15 years in strategic, operational and drug development roles in the biotech and life science space. Most recently, he was Vice President of Business Development and Operations at BridgeBio (BBIO) where he advanced two late-stage portfolio companies, Phoenix Tissue Repair and Origin Biosciences. At Origin, Mike managed operations through clinical development; oversaw FDA and EMA approvals; and directed corporate strategy for the launch of Nulibry, BridgeBio's first commercial asset. Prior, Mike consulted for a wide range of biotech, pharma and private equity clients on projects spanning corporate, portfolio and commercial strategy, and business development in the oncology, inflammation and immunology, and autoimmunity disease spaces among other areas. Mike also spent time at Flagship Pioneering helping create early-stage platform companies centered on breakthrough science, such as Ring Therapeutics.
Mike is a scientist by training and developed small molecule inhibitors targeting key oncogenic and inflammatory pathways at the Center for Lymphoid Malignancy at Columbia University. He received his Ph.D. in Pathobiology working on cancer vaccine development at NYU School of Medicine and earned an A.B. in molecular biology from Princeton University.
Tom Boone, M.S.
Head of CMC and Product Development
Tom has more than 40 years of accomplishments in the discovery and development of protein therapeutics. Tom worked at Amgen for 28 years and served in positions of increasing responsibility in growing Amgen Protein Sciences to an organization of over 300 researchers across five different sites. His career at Amgen began in 1981 as a bench scientist with the isolation and cDNA cloning of novel cytokines and growth factors including G-CSF. He was also responsible for expressing, purifying, and formulating many of Amgen’s recombinant proteins. Tom developed proprietary processes used to produce recombinant G-CSF and other therapeutic candidates for clinical applications. Tom was the first Vice President of Amgen Protein Science. Tom was the lead scientist in the development of Nplate®, a treatment of thrombocytopenia. His critical role in the discovery and process development of G-CSF (Neupogen) is widely recognized. Tom has Masters degrees in Microbiology from UCLA and Soil Science from UC Davis. Tom has recently helped start several companies and has helped them license in clinical stage molecules. He is currently a consultant or scientific advisor for more than 30 companies, providing both strategic and technical guidance.
Sanuj Ravindran, M.D.
Chief Executive Officer
Sanuj has spent more than 20 years in strategic and operational roles across the life science industry, both as an investor and company builder. Most recently, he served as CEO-in-residence at BridgeBio (BBIO) where he was chief executive officer of PellePharm, and executive chair of Phoenix Tissue Repair. In these roles, Sanuj led both companies’ growth, directed strategy, secured significant partnerships, and advanced pipeline programs in oncology and rare skin diseases through mid- and late-stage clinical trials. Before this, he served as chief business officer at aTyr Pharma (LIFE), a clinical-stage protein therapeutics company focused on tRNA synthetases. Prior to that, Sanuj was senior vice president of corporate development at The Medicines Company (MDCO), where he led multiple transactions totaling more than $2 billion in potential value. Sanuj began his biotech career as a venture capitalist for 10 years with Burrill & Company, Radius Ventures, and Asian Healthcare Fund.
Sanuj was previously a practicing physician, board-certified in Internal Medicine, having completed his residency training at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. He received his bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University, his doctorate in medicine from Jefferson Medical College, and his master’s of business administration from the Kellogg School of Management.
Jake Bauer
Independent Director and Chair
Jake is a Venture Partner at ARCH Venture Partners and SR One Capital Management. Prior to MyoKardia Inc.’s acquisition by Bristol Myers Squibb in November 2020, Jake served as the Chief Business Officer of MyoKardia. Prior to this, he served as Senior Vice President, Finance and Corporate Development and Principal Financial Officer of MyoKardia having joined the company in 2014.
In earlier roles, Jake served as Vice President, Business Operations and head of corporate development at Ablexis, LLC and as a principal at Third Rock Ventures. While at Third Rock Ventures, he was actively involved in a variety of leading biopharmaceutical companies including Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc., CytomX Therapeutics Inc., and Global Blood Therapeutics, Inc. Previously, Jake served in roles in the investment group at Royalty Pharma, the business development group at Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc. and as a management consultant at Putnam Associates.
In addition to Simcha, he currently serves on the board of Arya Sciences Acquisition Corp V, Attralus, Enliven and Phoenix Tissue Repair, Inc.
Jake holds a B.S. in biology and a B.A. in economics from Duke University and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.
Simeon George, M.D.
SR One Capital Management
Simeon is CEO and Managing Partner of SR One, with overall responsibility for the fund and is Chair of the Investment Committee. Simeon joined SR One in 2007 and established its San Francisco office in 2010. Previously, he worked in management consulting (Bain & Co.) and investment banking (Goldman Sachs). Simeon led SR One’s investments in several marquee deals including CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP), Principia Biopharma (PRNB), Turning Point Therapeutics (TPTX), Progyny (PGNY), and Nkarta Therapeutics (NKTX), which he co-founded.
Simeon has a BA from the Johns Hopkins University and an MD/MBA from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine/The Wharton School.
Sean Li, Ph.D.
WuXi AppTec
Sean has over 10 years of combined experience in business development, investment, and research at big pharma and institutes. Sean is currently Director of investment at WuXi AppTec. He has served on the boards of six biotech companies and was a business development leader at AstraZeneca Oncology Medical, China and at CSPC Pharmaceutical Group.
Terry Rosen, Ph.D.
Independent Director
Terry has been leading successful drug discovery and development organizations in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries for more than 30 years. In 2015, he co-founded Arcus, a drug discovery company focused on the treatment of cancer by blocking tumor-induced immunosuppression. Previously, Terry was co-founder and CEO of Flexus Biosciences, focusing on small molecule drugs that reverse tumor immunosuppression. He has held several executive positions at Amgen and Tularik, as well as scientific and management positions at Pfizer and Abbott Laboratories. Terry also serves on the boards of scientific institutions such as the Salk Institute Board of Trustees and the Caltech Biology & Engineering Chair’s Council.
Aaron Ring, M.D., Ph.D.
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Aaron Ring, M.D., Ph.D., is the founder of Simcha Therapeutics and currently serves as associate professor and Anderson Family Chair for Immunotherapy at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. Prior to this, he was associate professor of immunobiology at Yale University. His research is focused on understanding and manipulating the communication circuitry of the immune system using precision immunopharmacology and systems immunology. His seminal work identifying the “jamming signal” called IL-18BP produced by tumors that prevents IL-18 binding and activation is the foundation of Simcha’s therapeutic approach. He holds M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Stanford University.