David B. Allison, Ph.D., is Dean, Distinguished Professor, and Provost Professor at the Indiana University–Bloomington School of Public Health. Continuously funded by the NIH as a PI for more than 25 years, he has authored more than 600 scientific publications. His awards include the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring (2006); the Friends of Albert (Mickey) Stunkard Lifetime Achievement Award from The Obesity Society (2021); the Don Owen Award from the San Antonio Chapter of the American Statistical Association (2020); and the Harry V. Roberts Statistical Advocate of the Year Award from the American Statistical Association (2018). In 2022 he was named a Distinguished Lecturer by Sigma Xi. Elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2012, he is an active contributor and was recently appointed as co-chair to the Strategic Council on Research Excellence, Integrity and Trust. Dr. Allison is a staunch advocate for rigor in research methods and the uncompromisingly truthful communication of research findings.
Cory Berkland holds the Solon E. Summerfield Distinguished Professorship in the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and in the Department of Chemical Engineering at The University of Kansas. He received MS and PhD degrees from the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign and a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from Iowa State University in Ames. His lab studies pharmaceuticals and biomaterials with a particular emphasis on molecular design and transport in the human body. Prof. Berkland is a co-founder of Orbis Biosciences (acquired by Adare Pharmaceuticals), Savara Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:SVRA), Bond Biosciences, and several other start-ups. He has served as a board member, C-level executive, and secured funding for these companies. Prof. Berkland currently is CEO of Bond Biosciences.
Abraham J. Domb is a Professor for Medicinal Chemistry and Biopolymers at the School of Pharmacy-Faculty of Medicine and Forensic Sciences at the faculty of Law of the Hebrew University. He earned BSc degrees in Chemistry, Pharmaceutics and Law, Diplomas in Business management and Textile science and PhD from The Hebrew University. He did his postdoctoral training at Syntex Research, MIT and Harvard university. Since 1991 he is at the Hebrew university. During 2007-2012 he headed the Division of Forensic Science at the Israel Police. During 2014-2016 he served as president of College of Engineering. 2018-2021 he was the head of the School of Pharmacy of the Hebrew University. Since 2021 he is the Chief Scientist of the Ministry of Innovation, science, and technology. His research interests include medicinal and polymer chemistry, pharmaceutical development and drug delivery systems, oral and dental research, and forensic science.
Rachel Lane, PhD, RD is CEO of BIO Alabama, the state affiliate of BIO International and the trade association that exclusively serves Alabama’s bioscience industry. She began her career practicing evidence-based nutrition in a long-term acute care hospital, where she worked closely with the medical team to implement a first-in-kind medical nutrition therapy protocol that increased the dietitian’s clinical autonomy to integrate evidence-based nutritional care. After five years in the clinic, she surrendered to the lull of graduate school, eventually earning a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Her master’s thesis and doctoral dissertation explored the influence of metabolic pathways on disease progression and the potential for novel sugar chains to improve the effectiveness of therapeutics, respectively. Dr. Lane then founded The Written Science, LLC, where she worked with technical and business experts to clarify the business potential of new biotechnology. As CEO of BIO Alabama, Dr. Lane combines her clinical and research experience to weave together the state’s bioscience industry, linking stakeholders and assets across the state, nation, and globe to serve, connect, nurture, and fortify Alabama’s bio industry and economy. Dr. Lane is an active volunteer, helping students engage in STEM, promoting women in science, and supporting technical startups. Rachel’s favorite destination is anywhere with her husband and two-year-old son that lacks cell service.
Chris van der Walle obtained his PhD in peptide chemistry from King’s College London, where he was subsequently awarded a Maplethorpe Fellowship. He moved to the University of Oxford to study cell-matrix interactions before taking up lectureships at the Universities of Bath and later Strathclyde, becoming a Reader. In 2012, he joined the Biopharmaceutical Development group of MedImmune to formulate monoclonal antibodies, then merging with AstraZeneca as Director-Fellow to develop early-stage messenger RNA lipid nanoparticle therapeutics. Over 2020-21, he led the Formulation Development team in T-cell therapeutics at GlaxoSmithKline, then taking up his current position as Edinburgh Centre Director of the Cell & Gene Therapy Catapult, focused to scientific and industrial collaboration, technology transfer and clinical trial acceleration. He has published over 100 research articles, reviews and book chapters and retains an interest in the pharmaceutical science of advanced therapy medicinal products.
Anand Subramony is Vice President within the Biologics Engineering and Targeted Delivery group, R&D, at AstraZeneca (AZ). In this role, he leads various cross-functional teams and initiatives in the areas of nanomedicine (for targeted delivery, enabling new modalities and creating technology platforms), antibody-drug conjugates, and drug delivery. He also heads external innovation and provides leadership to CoSolve, an AZ open innovation platform that brings compelling technologies to the portfolio. Before serving in his current role, Dr. Subramony headed the Drug Delivery & Device Development at MedImmune and built an internal team that focused on combination product development and oral peptide/biologics delivery and other novel controlled release drug delivery technologies. Prior to that position, he was Principal Fellow and Head of Novel Delivery Technologies at the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR, Cambridge, MA), head of the Materials Science group (E-TRANS) at Alza/J&J (Mountain View, CA), and Director of Materials Science & Drug delivery at Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories (Bridgewater, NJ). With his broad experience in pharma biotech, Dr. Subramony brings innovation and scientific rigor coupled with execution excellence and sense of urgency toward drug development to create patient-centric products. He has established and managed high-performing teams in all his roles. Dr. Subramony holds an M.S. degree in Materials Science Engineering (IIT, Bombay) and a Ph.D. degree from Purdue University. He was a research scientist at the University of Washington, Seattle, before taking up industrial positions. With several refereed publications and patents, he is a Key Opinion Leader in the area of drug delivery.
Karen L. Wooley holds the W. T. Doherty-Welch Chair in Chemistry and is a Distinguished Professor at Texas A&M University, with appointments in the Departments of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science & Engineering. She is also the co-founder and President of Sugar Plastics, LLC, and Chief Technology Officer of Teysha Technologies, LTD. Karen relocated to Texas A&M University in 2009, after having spent the first sixteen years of her independent academic career on the faculty at Washington University in St. Louis. Research interests include the synthesis and characterization of degradable polymers derived from natural products, unique macromolecular architectures, complex polymer assemblies, and well-defined nanostructured materials, with emphases on the design and development of materials that address societal, medical, technological and/or environmental advances. Recent awards include the American Chemical Society Award in Polymer Chemistry (2014), the Royal Society of Chemistry Centenary Prize (2014), and election as a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2015), and the National Academy of Inventors (2019). In 2020, she was awarded Fellowship to the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering, and the National Academy of Sciences. She was named as the 2021 Southeastern Conference (SEC) Professor of the Year. Karen has served on international scientific or technical advisory boards and served in consulting capacities for several companies, law firms, and academic institutions, centers, and programs. Karen completed undergraduate study at Oregon State University (B.S., Chemistry, 1988) and graduate study at Cornell University (Ph.D., Polymer Chemistry, 1993).
