Leadership

Dr. Evren Alici is a senior researcher and group leader in Hematology at Karolinska Institutet (KI), Department of Medicine, Stockholm, Sweden. He also serves as co-director of NextGenNK, an international Competence Center for the development of next-generation NK cell-based cancer immunotherapies based at KI. He received his M.D. and did his residency at the Ege University, Turkey. He received his Ph.D. in 2006 at KI. His main research interests are novel approaches to generating universal cells including allogeneic NK cells, multiple myeloma, lentiviral and retroviral gene transfer, stem cell transplantation and immunology. He is a member of several international and national committees, advisory boards and scientific meetings. He is currently leading a group of more than 20 scientists. Dr. Alici participated in the planning and design of the first clinical study with gene-modified cells in Sweden and authored the final publication. Additionally, he was also responsible for the first-in-man autologous NK cell therapy clinical trial that was classified as advanced therapy medicinal product use.

Dr. Poché was appointed as Vycellix’s CEO on April 1, 2024. Tom brings over 25 years of experience across all phases of intellectual property, regulatory strategy and complex transactions relating to small molecules, biologics and medical devices. Most recently, Tom has served as General Counsel for PleoPharma, and notably he served as Vice President and Head of Intellectual Property Management and Strategy at Allergan until its $63 billion takeover by Abbvie in 2020. Prior to Allergan, he was a Partner in the Washington, D.C. offices of Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, Cooley Godward Kronish and Connolly Bove Lodge & Hutz. Tom received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Chicago.

Mr. Calder serves on the Board of Directors for NextGenNK, an international Competence Center for the development of next-generation NK cell-based cancer immunotherapies based at Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. He also serves as a Director for BioFlorida and is a Member of the Society for Natural Immunity.

A graduate of Florida State University, Mr. Calder has nearly 25-years of life science executive experience, with an emphasis on investor relations, capital markets strategies and public/media relations, having served in senior executive and officer roles for biotechnology companies and research institutes including the Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute, Biovest International, Accentia Biopharmaceuticals and Viragen, as well as having formerly served as a licensed registered representative financial portfolio manager with a focus on life science equities with the NYSE-member firms, Gruntal & Co. and Dean Witter Reynolds.

Professor Hans-Gustaf Ljunggren earned his medical and doctoral degrees at Karolinska Institutet (KI). He also serves as Center Director of NextGenNK, an international Competence Center for the development of next-generation NK cell-based cancer immunotherapies based at KI. In 2001, he was appointed Professor of Infection Medicine and Director of the Center for Infectious Medicine (CIM), a Strategic Research Center at the Department of Medicine, KI. He has authored >300 articles within the fields of immunology, infectious diseases and cancer and been cited >20,000 times. Immune reactions mediated by innate immune cells such as NK cells have been a long-standing focus of his research. Starting off from simple model systems, Ljunggren and collaborators early on provided fundamental insights molecular specificity and function of NK cells. In recent years, he has gone on to explore the same cells in humans. His research group is now taking new steps exploring the use of NK cells in therapeutic settings in humans with cancer. Professor Ljunggren has been a member of the organizing or scientific committees of numerous international conferences. He has had multiple national and international assignments, involving external research evaluations and participation in international advisory boards. He has been a member of the editorial board of several leading international journals within the field of immunology. He has functioned as Dean of Research at KI and is a member of the Nobel Assembly at KI, which awards the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Mr. Cartwright has 25+ years of financial management including as Chief Financial Officer in both the public and private sectors within the healthcare, finance, and telecommunications industries. He is the former CFO for TherapeuticsMD (Nasdaq: “TXMD”), which was once one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in Florida with multiple FDA-approved therapeutic drugs approved and commercialized.

Dr. Silverman is the founder of L.I.S. BioConsulting, leveraging her deep expertise in leading translational development activities for her cell and gene therapy clients. She combines nuanced understanding of the scientific, clinical and commercial landscapes to drive a company’s strategic decisions. Her scientific development experience includes process design, analytical methods, raw materials, lab operations, intellectual property, regulatory interactions, and outward-facing communications. She has overseen multi-functional, multi-layered teams and has developed plans and strategies with both short and long-term implications for business. Her work has resulted in numerous peer-reviewed manuscripts and presentations at academic and industry conferences, as well as issued patents. She earned a BSE in Chemical Engineering from Princeton and a Ph.D. in Bioengineering from the University of Pennsylvania.