Cory Berkland is a Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and the Department of Chemistry at Washington University in St. Louis. 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.
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.
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).
