Role: Sets vision and direction for company
Experience: Over 15 years working on Parkinson’s disease. Founding CEO at NeuroInitiative since 2014 where she laid out a vision for applying advanced computational drug discovery methods which led to creation of Vincere Biosciences where she is also CEO. Previously she worked with Matt Farrer at Mayo clinic to characterize genetic models of Parkinson’s disease and was part of the team that discovered a new pathogenic mutation in VPS35. Her PhD work implemented cutting edge laser capture, microarray, and in vivo siRNA techniques to identify protective genomic changes in Parkinson’s models. Recipient of JBJ’s 40 under 40 award, winner of One Spark’s science award, and supporter of science on the TEDx and March for Science stages.
Education: PhD in Neuroscience from Michigan State University, postdoctoral work at Mayo Clinic
Favorite Quote: “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.” – Alan Kay

Role: Advises on business strategy and fundraising
Experience: Angel investor with 30 years of business strategy and finance experience. Former Head of the Global Technology Banking Group at Morgan and Chief Strategy Officer for IBM’s Services Division.
Education: Graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy, holds a BS in Applied Mathematics/Economics from Brown University, and an MBA in Finance/Marketing from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business
Favorite Quote: “Behold the turtle. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out.” – James Bryant Conant

Role: Co-inventor of Vincere’s molecules, she now leads the development team to carry the molecules to human trials
Experience: More than 25 years of medicinal chemistry experience doing drug discovery in a variety of therapeutic areas for both large pharma (Upjohn, Pharmacia and Pfizer) and biotech. She also serves as a consultant to the NIH NINDS Blueprint program helping small biotechs and academic groups discover drugs for a variety of CNS indications. She has extensive experience in all aspects of drug discovery and design including hit identification, lead optimization, structure-based drug design, preclinical development and early API strategy.
Education: Phd Organic Chemistry from University of Wisconsin-Madison
Favorite Quote: “Not everything that can be counted counts. Not everything that counts can be counted.” – William Bruce Cameron

Role: Aids new compound design
Experience: Over 30 years experience in synthetic and medicinal chemistry, drug discovery and early drug development. Previous roles included consulting for several Boston area biotechs and Head of Discovery Chemistry at Syngene International (India). At AstraZeneca and Bristol-Myers Squibb, his leadership in the therapeutic areas of cardiovascular, metabolic disease, and infectious disease, resulted in several molecules entering the clinic, with one commercialized (entecavir/Baraclude®). He has authored over 40 peer-reviewed publications and is co-inventor on over 40 US patents.
Education: PhD in Organic Chemistry from University of California Los Angeles, postdoctoral work at Stanford University
Favorite Quote: “It is well to remember that most arguments in favor of not trying an experiment are too flimsily based.” – Robert Burns Woodward

Role: Responsible for the evaluation of drug-like properties and the translation to clinical trials
Experience: DMPK and nonclinical development scientist with over 20 years of experience translating small-molecule programs from the initial idea into a clinical asset. Led the advancement of molecules at Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Cyclerion Therapeutics, Enveda Biosciences, and Delix Therapeutics, through preclinical translation and mechanistic understanding to the validation in patients of need. Currently helping small companies like Vincere blend classical drug discovery techniques with modeling to help bring their opportunities to patients.
Education: PhD in Chemistry from the University of Massachusetts – Lowell
Favorite Quote: “Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood.” – Marie Curie

Role: Support safety and toxicology studies
Experience: Toxicology science expert bringing over 40 years of global industry experience from his leadership at Otsuka Pharmaceutical, Unilever, Environ, and DuPont. Currently Principal of Brock Scientific Consulting. Recognized for bridging scientific rigor with regulatory insight to guide clients through complex safety and compliance landscapes.
Education: PhD in Toxicology from the University of Kentucky. Board certified by the American Board of Toxicology and the Academy of Toxicological Sciences
Favorite Quote: Many from Sir Winston Churchill

Role: Guide regulatory strategy and submission
Experience: Regulatory expert with three decades of experience, including as an executive and partner at Halloran Consulting Group and Chief Development Officer at Anji Pharma.  Led multiple successful marketing applications and filed IND/CTAs in the US, Canada, EU, Japan, China, Australia and Latin America.  Currently an independent regulatory consultant, supporting regulatory and clinical development for novel therapies to provide meaningful patient benefit. 
Education: BS in Biology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Certificate in Change Management from Colorado State University
Favorite Quote:  “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t – you’re right.”
 – Henry Ford

Role: Provide CMC guidance and oversight
Experience: CMC expert with over 15 years of experience advancing programs from preclinical through commercial stages across multiple therapeutic areas in API and drug development, technology transfer, regulatory submissions, and CDMO management. Previously in senior leadership roles at Spero Therapeutics, Ikena Oncology, and PepGen, and currently President of Heck Yeah Consulting LLC.
Education: PhD in Organic Chemistry from The University of Texas at Austin
Favorite Quote: “Reason is immortal, all else mortal.” – Pythagoras

Role: Guide program management, milestones, and timelines
Experience: Biotech program and portfolio leader (PMP, LSS Green Belt) who translates discovery into clinical and regulatory milestones. Delivers strategy, development plans, risk/portfolio frameworks, and streamlined finance, vendor, and alliance operations. Previously at Pfizer, Akebia Therapeutics, Revolution Medicines, and Rome Therapeutics, with experience advancing multiple discovery programs into development, filing multiple INDs, leading an NDA + MAA submission, and managing commercial products.
Education: MS in Biotechnology Management from Harvard University
Favorite Quote: “All the sorrow in your life is born of the wish to make yourself happy. All the joy in your life blooms from the longing to make others so.” – my motto

Role: Leads strategic initiatives ranging from grants to partnerships and investor relations
Experience: Scientist with a passion for communicating cutting edge research between expert groups as well as with the general public. She studied mass spectrometry characterization of novel alkylating agents under Dr. Xiaohua Peng. Her industry experience includes working in MALDI mass spectrometry imaging and R&D analytical project management.
Education: MS in Bioanalytical Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee
Favorite Quote: “Medium is the message.” – Marshall McLuhan

Role: Provide leadership and direction on scientific activities
Experience: Scientist with more than 20 years of experience in leveraging in vitro and in vivo models to identify druggable targets for multiple indications. Passionate about discovering new therapeutics and improving patient’s quality of life. Previously, she spearheaded teams in upstream process development for protein-based therapeutics. Additionally, she has contributed towards a host of R&D areas including various branches of toxicology, oncology, and infectious disease.
Education: PhD in Medical Science from Brown University, postdoctoral work at Tufts University
Favorite Quote: “Research is to see what everybody else has seen, and to think what nobody else has thought.” – Albert Szent-Gyorgyi

Role: Investigating the role of mitophagy-mitochondria activation in Parkinson disease models
Experience: Molecular biologist with more than 10 years working on cellular senescence and mitochondrial function to improve lifespan and health span of animals. Research focusing on understanding metabolic diseases, cancer signaling pathway, and neuronal disorder mechanism caused by high glucose diets, malfunction of mitochondria, and aging progress. Working to improve both humans’ longevity and healthy living by new neuronal therapy development.
Education: PhD in Metabolic Disease & Aging from Ajou University
Favorite Quote: “Ask yourself or your teacher one question every day.” – my motto

Role: Assist in the execution of research experiments
Experience: Research Associate with versatile and diverse experience in the field of molecular biology, complemented by a range of supporting skills. In academic research, his experience revolved around mRNA and in industry, he was involved in multifaceted roles spanning research and development, large scale production, and cell culture optimization.
Education: BS in Biomedical Engineering from Tufts University
Favorite Quote: “The absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence.” – Carl Sagan

Role: Support execution of research experiments
Experience: Research Associate with a passion for longevity and diseases of aging. Previously, Josh gained experience in Richard Miller’s lab, part of the Interventions Testing Program, investigating the molecular mechanisms and activation pathways impacted by lifespan extending therapies, and contributed to the characterization of autophagy following trametinib supplementation. He also worked in the lab of Ursula Jakob, investigating links between oxidative state change and epigenetic regulation important to longevity.
Education: BS in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology from the University of Michigan
Favorite Quote: “Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” — Carl Sagan

Experience: Director of the Medical Research Council Protein Phosphorylation and Ubiquitylation unit at University of Dundee. Alessi has spent decades characterizing how phosphorylation and ubiquitylation cascades control biological function and disease resulting in 275 manuscripts which have been cited over 70,000 times establishing his role as a leader of the field.
Education: BSc and PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Birmingham, postdoctoral research in the MRC PPU.

Experience: Prior Professor of Chemistry at MIT and current Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School where he founded the Laboratory for Drug Discovery in Neurodegeneration and directed the Morris K. Udall NIH Parkinson’s Disease Research Center of Excellence at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Founder and Chief Science Officer of Link Medicine through its sale to AstraZeneca and Chief Science Officer at Lysosomal Therapeutics, Inc. through its sale to Bial. 
Education: AB (cum laude) in Chemistry from Princeton University and PhD in Organic Chemistry from Harvard University under the direction of Nobel laureate E. J. Corey. Postdoctoral research at the Rockefeller University.

Experience: Dr. Alastair Reith brings over twenty-five years of experience from GSK R&D, where he served as Senior Director – Neurodegeneration, Neuroscience Therapy Area Unit. During his tenure, he led neurodegeneration drug discovery initiatives in target validation, identification of clinical candidate compounds, portfolio progression, clinical biomarker and experimental medicine studies – including leadership of GSK’s LRRK2 inhibitor programs for Parkinson’s disease to late preclinical development.
Education: Dr. Reith holds a BSc in Biological Sciences from the University of Leicester UK, a PhD in Biochemistry from Imperial College London UK, and completed postdoctoral research as a NATO Fellow at Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute, Toronto.

Experience: Currently professor and Chair, Founding Director of the Institute for Quantitative Biomedicine, and Director of the RCSB Protein Data Bank at Rutgers. Previously Distinguished Lilly Research Scholar in Lilly Research Laboratories, which he joined upon acquisition of SGX Pharmaceuticals where he was CSO after SGX acquisition of Prospect Genomics, which he co-founded. Prior to Prospect, Burley was Professor at The Rockefeller University and an Investigator in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
Education: B.Sc. in Physics from University of Western Onterio, M.D. from Harvard Medical School, and D.Phil in Structural Biology from Oxford University. Internal medicine training at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and postdoctoral research at Harvard and MIT.