Dirk G. Brockstedt, PhD, is the Chief Scientific Officer at RAPT Therapeutics and has more than 25 years of experience in the fields of immunology and oncology originating with his PhD from the University of Kiel and Stanford University. Dr Brockstedt joined RAPT Therapeutics in 2018, bringing a wealth of experience in immunology at all stages of discovery, translational and clinical development. He joined RAPT from Aduro Biotech, where he served as Executive Vice President of Research and Development. Prior to Aduro, Dr Brockstedt held positions of increasing responsibility within the immunology department of Cerus Corporation and at Aventis in the immunotherapy and anti-angiogenesis groups. Dr Brockstedt co-authored over 50 scientific papers and is a named inventor on several issued patents and pending applications.

Greg Russotti, PhD, is Chief Technology and Manufacturing Officer at Century Therapeutics. Prior to joining Century, Dr Russotti served as Vice President of Cell Therapy Development and Operations at Celgene. At Celgene, he guided chemistry, manufacturing and control efforts for five different cell therapy products to clinical-stage development. Dr Russotti was also a leader in establishing in-house clinical manufacturing at Celgene, and in building Celgene’s first commercial CAR T manufacturing facility. Earlier, he held various leadership roles at Merck Research Laboratories, developing vaccines and monoclonal antibodies for clinical and commercial manufacturing. He received his BS and MS degrees in Chemical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and his PhD in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering from Rutgers University. Dr Russotti has held a visiting professorship in Rutgers Biomedical Engineering department since 2008. He also serves as Industrial Executive Board Member of the Marcus Center for the Commercialization of Cell Therapies at Georgia Tech, and as an Executive Committee member of the National Science Foundation-funded Center for the Manufacturing of Advanced Therapeutics at Georgia Tech.

James Moon, PhD, is John Gideon Searle Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biomedical Engineering, and Chemical Engineering at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. His interdisciplinary research program aims to develop novel biomaterials-based strategies for cancer immunotherapy. Dr Moon has published over 120 research articles, including those published in Nature Materials, Nature Medicine, Nature Nanotechnology and Science Translational Medicine. He has over 23 pending/approved U.S. and international patent applications, and his novel drug delivery technologies have led to 3 new start-up companies. Dr Moon is a fellow of BMES, AIBME and CRS, and his contributions to the field has been recognized with numerous awards, including NSF CAREER Award and Samyang CRS Award. Dr. Moon received his bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley (2002), and his PhD from Rice University (2008), and he completed his postdoctoral training at MIT. He joined the faculty of the University of Michigan in 2012.

Mara Goldstein was most recently a senior biotechnology and managing director with Mizuho Securities, providing research coverage of oncology-focused companies. Ms Goldstein joined Mizuho Securities in late 2018, following her tenure with Cantor Fitzgerald that spanned seven years, where she served as a senior biotechnology analyst and head of the healthcare group, and in a dual capacity as research analyst and director of research beginning in 2016. During her time with Cantor, healthcare coverage grew to over 130 stocks spanning multiple sub-sectors, and helped to launch Cantor’s healthcare conference program. Prior to Cantor Fitzgerald, Ms Goldstein headed the healthcare team at Reuters Insight (Anian), and later head of the research group. Ms Goldstein also spent eight years with CIBC World Markets (now Oppenheimer) as an executive director and senior analyst covering large capitalization pharmaceutical companies, drug delivery companies and contract research organizations (CROs). Before joining CIBC World Markets, Ms Goldstein was an associate analyst with Alex. Brown & Sons (now Deutsche Bank), covering biotechnology, drug delivery, large cap pharmaceuticals, PBMs and drug distribution companies. Ms Goldstein has been quoted in numerous national publications such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Financial Times, as well as news sources such as Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters, and has been a guest on CNBC and ABC’s World News Tonight.

Ms Goldstein graduated from Purdue University with a Bachelor of Science in economics and minors in history and French. Ms Goldstein currently holds FINRA Series 7, 63, 86, 87, 24 and SIE licenses.

Noor Jailkhani, PhD, is the CEO and co-founder of Matrisome Bio, a venture-backed biotech company focused on improving the lives of patients with chronic diseases such as cancer and fibrosis. She was previously a research scientist and Mazumdar-Shaw international oncology Fellow at the Koch Institute at MIT, where she played a vital role in developing the company’s foundational technology. Dr Jailkhani has over a decade of experience in oncology and extracellular matrix (ECM) biology, focusing on developing ECM-targeted agents for cancer detection and therapy, such as ECM-targeted cytokines and CAR T-cells. Her work has led to multiple publications and patent applications related to cancer, ECM biology, and their applications to disease. Dr Jailkhani holds a PhD in Immunology from the International Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology and an MS in Biomedical Sciences from Delhi University. She led the company’s seed fundraising efforts, successfully securing seed capital, and is now leveraging her knowledge and experience to drive the vision and mission of Matrisome Bio.

Marcus Conant, MD is a physician who treated thousands of HIV patients in the early 80s while running the inpatient dermatology service at the University of California San Francisco. Before anyone recognized the virus or understood that it was about to become a global epidemic, Conant took the lead in forming the Kaposi’s Sarcoma Research & Education Foundation in 1982, which later became the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. He conducted early clinical trials, persevering despite seeing 94% of patients die during the epidemic’s first years. His clinical experience sensitized him to the suffering caused by the disease. As a physician with a holistic perspective, Conant’s work expanded beyond the strictly clinical, to include education, research, and advocacy. Marcus is currently a clinical professor emeritus at the University of California Medical Center in San Francisco. Conant has published more than 70 articles on the treatment of AIDS, testified in front of Congress multiple times, and is a powerful advocate for the LGBTQ community.

In April 2022, Mustafa Noor, MD, FACP joined Olatec’s Drug Development Team as Chief Medical Officer. At both large and small pharma companies, Dr Noor has contributed to numerous clinical drug development programs, leading and collaborating with teams in the development of novel therapeutics for inflammation, cardiometabolism, lipid and endocrine disorders as well as rare diseases. From 2001 to 2006, as medical director at Bristol-Myers Squibb, Dr Noor held positions of increasing responsibility in metabolic, cardiovascular, and antiviral programs. From 2006 to 2014 at GSK and at Pfizer he served as vice president and clinical head for GSK’s Center of Excellence in External Drug Discovery and for Pfizer’s Centers for Therapeutic Innovation focusing on open innovation, translational research and collaboration with biotech and academic partners on a portfolio of early-stage programs in indications for inflammatory diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and sarcoidosis. For the last several years Dr Noor has been a consultant CMO to emerging companies in the Boston/Cambridge area. Dr Noor completed his medical training at the University of Chicago and fellowship training in Endocrinology and Metabolism at the University of California, San Francisco. He holds a Master of Science in Clinical Investigation from Vanderbilt University and is a board-certified Internal Medicine specialist in Endocrinology and Metabolism.

Ajay Sadhwani is an Executive Life Science Professional with over 25 years of clinical research experience. He is a proven leader of cross functional teams and people management of large and small functional groups with a proven track record of successfully leading teams and motivating individuals to perform at their highest level.

Hunter Smith is the Head of Clinical Recruitment at Govig Biopharma and sits alongside a team of 18 tenured recruiters. His education in genetic biology and cellular development coupled with a passion for emerging and revolutionary therapies drive his consultative approach to partnering with the industry's leading organizations. With over 22 years of experience recruiting in the life sciences, the Govig team specializes in establishing and scaling up teams across preclinical, clinical development, clinical operations, medical affairs, pharmacovigilance, and regulatory affairs. Smith's expertise lies largely in VP through C-Suite level searches. Govig deploys organization-specific strategies through a comprehensive approach to recruitment to ensure optimal individual and organizational success.

Patrick Smith, MSc, Lean Certified, Feasibility Manager & Clinical Trial Leader at Scimega, helps to ensure the Scimega mission is fulfilled by leading his team of oncology clinical research professionals to provide 50% quicker site start-up times for these cutting-edge oncology trials in Canada. With 17 years of clinical research experience including his work with the Canadian Cancer Trials Group (CCGT) and with some large CROs, Mr Smith’s area of focus is in lung cancers, GI and brain tumor types as well as hematological malignancies. He received his Master of Science in Pathology and Molecular Medicine from Queen’s University, where he studied synthetic modifications to OC medications in osteoarthritis for the regeneration of cartilage. Mr Smith is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and received Lean certification from the world renowned The Lean Six Sigma Company.

Dr Feldman is currently Professor of Oncology and Director of the Early Phase Clinical Trial Program at the Montefiore Einstein Cancer Center. His research centers primarily on developmental therapeutics in cancer, with a focus on antibody-based therapeutics. His clinical background is in hematology and medical oncology with specific training in stem cell transplantation and expertise in the management of patients with myeloid malignancies. In addition to 30+ years in the academic world, He has been Head of Development and Chief Medical Officer at several leading biotech companies, heading the pre-clinical and clinical development of immuno-oncology agents, including bi-specific and multi-specific antibodies in both hematologic malignancies and solid tumors.

Kartik Krishnan joined OncoNano Medicine as their first CMO in June of 2022. He has over 20 years of experience with experimental therapeutics in cancer as both an investigator and sponsor. Prior to OncoNano, Dr Krishnan was CMO of Arcus Biosciences, a discovery and clinical development company focusing on combination therapies in immuno-oncology. At Arcus, Dr Krishnan oversaw a portfolio of agents including both biologics and small molecules at multiple phases of development from first-in-human to Phase 3 and led a diverse group of functions. Prior to Arcus, Dr Krishnan had spent time in clinical development and pharmacovigilance at Astex, FivePrime Therapeutics, BioMarin, Genentech Roche and Amgen. Before joining the biotechnology industry, Dr Krishnan held a faculty position in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Arizona, with both clinical and primary research responsibilities. Dr Krishnan received his BA in History (with Distinction) from the University of Virginia. He completed his MD and PhD in Cellular, Molecular and Biophysical Studies at Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons. His PhD studies were completed in the lab of Dr John Krolewski, focusing on JAK/STAT signaling in the interferon pathway. Dr Krishnan trained in pediatrics at UCLA and in pediatric hematology and oncology at Johns Hopkins University and the National Cancer Institute.