founders – en

TEAM

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PROF. DR. MED. ANDREAS BIRKENFELD

SCIENTIFIC FOUNDER

 

Chair of Medicine and Director of the Department of Diabetology, Endocrinology and Nephrology, University Clinic Tübingen

  • Director Dept. for Diabetology, Endocrinology, Nephrology, University Clinic Tübingen; Chair and Full Professor of Diabetology, Endocrinology, Nephrology, University Tübingen; Director Institute of Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) Helmholtz Center Munich; Director of the Southwest German Diabetes Center (SWDZ) University Tübingen; Board of Directors Interfaculty Centre for Pharmacogenomics and Pharma Research (ICEPHA) University Tübingen; Chair of Clinical Study Board German Center for Diabetes Research; Speaker German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD e.V.); Board, AG Diabetes & Heart, German Diabetes Association (DDG); Reader (~ Associate Professor) Dept. of Diabetology King’s College London UK
  • Previous Positions: Postdoctoral Fellow of the DFG, Yale University with Gerald I Shulman; DFG-Group Leader ‘Energy Metabolism’ Charité-Berlin; Hans A. Krebs Professor of Therapy & Pathophysiology of Diabetes Charité-Berlin; Associate Professor of Metabolic Vascular Medicine Medical Faculty of the Technical University Dresden, Chair of Dept. of Metabolic Vascular Medicine University Clinic Dresden
  • Clinical expertise: Board certified specialist in Internal Medicine, Board certified specialist in Diabetes Medicine, Endocrinology and Lipidology (DGFF), Research group leader focusing on understanding molecular, cellular and clinical mechanisms of the regulation of energy homeostasis

Foto Verena Müller; © Universitätsklinikum Tübingen

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PROF. DR. MED. JENS JORDAN

SCIENTIFIC FOUNDER

 

Head of Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Cologne

  • Director, Institute of Aerospace Medicine, German Aerospace Center (DLR) and University of Cologne
  • Previous positions: Director Institute for Clinical Pharmacology, Medical School Hannover (MHH); Director of the Franz-Volhard Center for Clinical Research Charité Berlin; Clinical Working Group Leader at the Max-Delbrück Centrum (MDC) Berlin
  • Clinical expertise: board certified clinical pharmacologist and internist specialized in cardiovascular and metabolic disease management, research group leader with focus on mechanisms and causes of obesity-associated metabolic and cardiovascular disease
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MARCO JANEZIC

MANAGING DIRECTOR & CO-FOUNDER

  • Managing Director and co-founder of Eternygen, CEO and Founding Partner Blue Ribbon Partners, Managing Director Life Science Factory Göttingen, Associate of the Creative Destruction Lab Oxford (Health and AI streams)
  • Marco has started a dozen companies, a big proportion of which in the biotech space and did 4 exits (incl. a silicon valley exit)
  • Previous positions: entrepreneur and investor with activities across multiple sectors, including Biotech/LifeSciences (Chazim AkroMab, SmartBax),  IT (IntraWorlds),  Media (vertical network media, wunder media), Services (Clevis Group) and Impact/Social Investments (Talents4Good, Auticon, Media4Care); positions  in investment banking in the UK and management consultancy in Germany, Lecturer on entrepreneurship at different universities
  • Educational background: MA in Theoretical Physics and Philosophy University of Oxford
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DR. GRIT ZAHN

HEAD OF SCIENCE

  • Head of Research of Eternygen GmbH
  • Grit has more than 20 Years experience in drug development and was part of one of Germany’s first and most high-profile BioTech successes
  • Previous positions: Senior Director Lead Discovery Biology at Jerini AG, Project leader at Jerini Ophthalmic Inc. New York, Head of Project Management R&D ipal GmbH, Researcher at Charité University Hospital in Berlin
  • Educational background: PhD in Biochemistry from Humboldt University Berlin
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DR. ELISABETH KARG

OPERATIONS & FINANCE

  • Operations & Finance Eternygen, Partner at Blue Ribbon Partners
  • Elisabeth has learned to love -omics based approaches during her PhD and now oversees the Operations and Finances at Eternygen and engages in numerous life science entrepreneurial activities as a Partner at Blue Ribbon Partners
  • Previous Positions: Venture Manager at Blue Ribbon Partners, Research positions at LMU Munich, Research Intern at Carnegie Institution for Science Stanford USA
  • Educational background: PhD in Biology from LMU Munich

BOARD

Christian Schetter

DR. CHRISTIAN SCHETTER

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD

  • Managing Director Arix Bioscience
  • Board & Advisory positions: Executive Chairman STipe Therapeutics, Non-Executive Director Atox Bio, Twelve Bio, Pyxis Oncology
  • Previous positions: CEO Rigontec GmbH; President and CEO Neovii Biotech, previously Fresenius Biotech.; Senior Vice President, European Operations Coley Pharmaceutical Group; Managing Director Coley GmbH
  • Educational background: PhD from the University of Cologne, postdoctoral research in oncology and virology at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, USA and Max-Planck-Institute for Biochemistry, Martinsried.
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UTE MERCKER

BOARD MEMBER

 

Investment Director IBB Ventures

  • Prokuristin / Investment Director at IBB Ventures
  • Current Board seats: Omeicos Therapeutics, Selfapy,  Eternygen, AIgnostics, Newsenselab
  • Longtime experience in early stage Venture Capital investments with healthcare focus:  Digital Health as well as Biotech & MedTech companies like Jerini, Scienion and Scopis
  • Educational background: MBA from the Freie Universität Berlin
Kyp Sirinakis

KYPARISSIA SIRINAKIS

BOARD MEMBER

 

Managing Partner Epidarex Capital

  • Co-founder and Managing Partner of Epidarex Capital
  • Current Board positions: Slate Biosciences Inc, Eternygen
  • Previous board positions: Harpoon Medical, Confluence Life Science, Nodthera, Sirakoss
  • Previous positions: senior management MASA Life Science Ventures (MLSV), CFO Oncologix, numerous directorships of start-up companies
  • Educational background: Graduate of Boston College’s School of Management Honors Program, certified Public Accountant in Maryland
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DR. KLAUS SCHOLLMEIER

BOARD MEMBER

 

CEO KCS-GmbH

  • CEO of KCS-GmbH
  • Board & Advisory positions: Tacalyx (Germany), Modra Pharmaceuticals (Netherlands), Anergis Pharma (Switzerland), Affiris Pharma (Austria) and Eternygen (Germany).
  • Previous positions: CEO SuppreMol GmbH, CEO Santhera Pharmaceuticals AG, several positions at BASF, Knoll and Abbott.
  • Educational background: PhD in Biology from the University of Düsseldorf, Germany
Cord Dohrmann

DR. CORD DOHRMANN

BOARD MEMBER

 

Chief Scientific Officer Evotec AG

  • Chief Scientific Officer and Member of the Management of Evotec SE
  • Board positions: Breakpoint Therapeutics, Facio Therapies, Immunitas, Eternygen
  • Advisory positions: Advisor to the German Council of Science and Humanities, the European Commission, the Max-Planck-Institute as well as various venture capital firms
  • Previous positions: CEO of DeveloGen, Researcher at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and at the Duke University, Durham, USA
  • Educational background: PhD from Harvard Medical School in Boston, USA

OBSERVERS

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PETER FINAN, PHD

KEY ADVISOR

 

Venture Partner Epidarex GmbH

  • Venture Partner Epidarex Capital
  • Board & Advisory positions: Boards of Directors Clyde Biosciences, Enterprise Therapeutics, Leucid Bio, Epidarex Exeed, Epsilogen, Eternygen, Topas Therapeutics, Lunac Therapeutics
  • Previous positions: Global Head of the Respiratory Disease Area and Site Head Novartis Institute of BioMedical Research UK, research positions at Cancer Research UK and the Yamanouchi Research Institute (now Astellas), Head of Biology Karus Therapeutics.
  • Educational background: BSc and PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology University of Leeds
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DR. KURT SCHWARZ

OBSERVER

 

Founder & Managing Director Leifina GmbH

  • Founder and Managing Director Leifina GmbH, investor and business angel of various biotech companies
  • Board positions: several board seats
  • Previous positions: Merck & Co. (New Jersey and german subsidiary), Research Fellow at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital Boston
  • Educational background: MD University of Heidelberg, PhD in Experimental Pharmacology

ADVISORS

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DR. CHRISTOPH GIBSON

ADVISOR

 

Director and head of Medicinal Chemistry department at AnalytiCon GmbH, Potsdam, Germany

  • Director and Head of Medicinal Chemistry AnalytiCon
  • Previous positions: Head of Development and Project Management ViroLogik, Director Medicinal Chemistry Jerini AG, postdoctoral fellow Institute for Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry Technical University of Munich and The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California
  • Educational background: PhD in chemistry Technical University of Munich
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PROF. DR. GERD SCHNORRENBERG

ADVISOR

  • Scientific advisor with extensive experience in pharmaceutical research and development in several therapeutic areas
  • Previous positions: Head of Research Germany Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co KG; lecturer in medicinal chemistry at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, honorary professorship from the German federal State of Rheinland-Pfalz; sabbatical at the University of California in San Diego and at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
  • Educational background: Diploma in Chemistry, PhD University of Bonn
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DR. ARND STEUERNAGEL

ADVISOR

  • Consultant Scientific Opportunity Development, Business strategies. Company and project development. Translational Medicine, drug development, MedTech, data analysis software 
  • Previous positions: SVP Evotec International AG Translational OMICs, Drug development, cross functional management; CSO ScilProteins Biologics platform development; Senior Director DeveloGen AG, Target and Drug discovery in metabolic disease; PostDoc position at Emory University Atlanta and in European Yeast Genome Project 
  • Educational background: PhD in Developmental Biology from University of Göttingen 
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DR. GERALD SHULMAN

SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY BOARD

  • Dr. Shulman holds the George R. Cowgill Professorship in Medicine and Cellular & Molecular Physiology at Yale University and serves as the Co-Director of the Yale Diabetes Research Center. Dr. Shulman also practices medicine at Yale New Haven Hospital, the primary teaching hospital of Yale University.
  • Dr. Shulman is a pioneer in using magnetic resonance spectroscopy and mass spectrometry to study glucose and fat metabolism in humans and rodent models. His research has advanced our understanding of type 2 diabetes, especially the role of lipids in causing insulin resistance. He has also contributed to the development of new drugs for T2D, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.
  • Previous positions: resident physician at Duke University Hospital, research assistant at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, postdoctoral researcher in Biochemistry and Biophysics at Yale University, Instructor at Harvard Medical School, Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine at Harvard Medical School, specializing in Endocrinology and Metabolism, Assistant Professor and then Associate Professor at Yale University.
  • Educational background: MD from Wayne State University; PhD in Physiology from Wayne State University
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DR. GELTRUDE MINGRONE

SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY BOARD

  • Dr. Migrone is Professor of Diabetes and Nutrition at Catholic University, School of Medicine in Rome, Italy and King’s College London,
  • Her research mainly focus on insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. She is expert in energy expenditure and metabolism regulation and bariatric surgery
  • She received her MD and completed her residency in endocrinology and in gastroenterology at the Catholic University / Policlinico Gemelli in Rome, Italy. She obtained a PhD in Clinical Pharmacology at the University of Ghent in Belgium. Professor Mingrone received numerous awards, has given hundreds of presentations throughout the world, and is the author of over 350 articles in peer-reviewed journals and book chapters.
  • She contributed and is still contributing to the ADA/EASD guidelines for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.