Board of Directors
Laura Shawver, Ph.D.
Chief Executive Officer, Phenomix
Laura K. Shawver, Ph.D. has served as our Chief Executive Officer and a member of our board of directors since June 2002. In addition, she served as our President until October 2007. Prior to joining us, Dr. Shawver was the President of SUGEN, Inc. from October 2000 to May 2002, after holding various positions there since June 1992. SUGEN, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of small molecule drugs which target specific cellular signal transduction pathways, was acquired by Pharmacia Corporation in 1999. Prior to her employment at SUGEN, Inc., Dr. Shawver was employed at Berlex Biosciences, formerly known as Triton Biosciences, from August 1989 to June 1992. She currently serves as a director of Antipodean Pharmaceuticals, a privately held clinical-stage pharmaceutical company. Dr. Shawver received a Ph.D. degree in Pharmacology and a B.S. degree in Microbiology, both from the University of Iowa. [CLOSE BIO]
John Diekman, Ph.D.
Founder & Managing Partner of 5AM Ventures
John Diekman, Ph.D has served as a member of our board of directors since February 2002. Dr. Diekman has served as a managing director of 5AM Ventures, a life sciences investment partnership, since August 2002. From June 1998 to July 2002, Dr. Diekman served as a managing director of Bay City Capital, a life sciences merchant bank. Dr. Diekman also serves as a member of the board of directors and the nominating and corporate governance committee of Affymetrix, Inc., a publicly traded life sciences company, as well as a member of the board of directors of several privately held companies. Dr. Diekman received a Ph.D. degree in Chemistry from Stanford University and a B.A. degree in Chemistry from Princeton University. [CLOSE BIO]
Anton Giorgio Failla
Director of Business Development, Chiesi Group
Anton Giorgio Failla has served on our Board of Directors since February 2010. Since 2008, Mr. Failla has served as the Director of Business Development for Chiesi Farmaceutici, S.p.A., a European pharmaceutical company with 2009 revenue in excess of $1.3 billion. Mr. Failla also serves on the Board of Directors for Chiesi. Prior to his employment at Chiesi, Mr. Failla served from 2004 to 2008 as the CFO and Senior Vice President of Operation for Sorin Group, a medical device company. From 2000 to 2004, Mr. Failla served as the Vice President of Business Development and Strategic Planning at Novartis Consumer Health at its headquarters in Switzerland. Prior to Novartis, Mr. Failla held various positions in business development at Medtronic, Inc., both in the US and in Europe. Mr. Failla is a board member of several private companies and also serves on the Board of Directors for Cornerstone Therapeutics.
Mr. Failla holds a Masters in Business Administration from SDA Bocconi, in Milan, Italy and a doctorate in Electronic Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Turin, Italy. [CLOSE BIO]
James Harper
Group Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer, Eli Lilly (Retired)
James Harper served as a member of our board of directors since July 2007. Mr. Harper has spent 30 years in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, all in positions with Eli Lilly and Company, from which he retired in 2004. Mr. Harper served as Group Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer from 2001 to 2004 and as President, Diabetes and Growth Disorders Business Unit / Product Group from 1994 to 2001. Mr. Harper also serves as member of the board of directors and compensation committee of Zymogenetics, Inc., a publicly traded biotechnology company, a member of the board of directors and compensation committee of Corcept Therapeutics, Inc., a publicly traded pharmaceutical company, and a member of the board of directors of Anesiva, Inc., a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company. Mr. Harper received an M.B.A. degree from The Wharton School of Business and a B.A. degree in Biology from Vanderbilt University. [CLOSE BIO]
William Harris
Sr. Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Xenoport
William Harris served as a member of our board of directors since July 2007. Since November 2001, Mr. Harris has served as the senior vice president and chief financial officer of Xenoport, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing a portfolio of internally discovered product candidates for the potential treatment of central nervous system disorders. From 1996 to 2001, he held several positions with Coulter Pharmaceutical, Inc., a biotechnology company engaged in the development of novel therapies for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases, the most recent of which was Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Corixa Corp., a developer of immunotherapeutic products, acquired Coulter Pharmaceutical in 2000. Mr. Harris received an M.B.A. degree from Santa Clara University, Leavey School of Business and Administration and a B.A. degree in Economics from the University of California, San Diego. [CLOSE BIO]
Daniel Janney
Managing Director, Alta Partners
Daniel Janney has served as a member of our board of directors since February 2002. Since February 1996, Mr. Janney has been a managing director of Alta Partners, a venture capital firm investing in information technologies and life science companies. Prior to joining Alta Partners, Mr. Janney was a Vice President in the health care and biotechnology investment banking group of Montgomery Securities from 1993 to 1996. Mr. Janney is a member of the board of directors and the compensation committee of Chemgenex Pharmaceuticals Limited, a publicly traded pharmaceutical development company, and also serves on the boards of directors of several privately held companies. Mr. Janney received an M.B.A. degree from the Anderson School at the University of California, Los Angeles and a B.A. degree in History from Georgetown University. [CLOSE BIO]
Deepika Pakianathan, Ph.D.
General Partner, Delphi Ventures
Deepika R. Pakianathan, Ph.D. has served as a member of our board of directors since April 2005. Since June 2001, Dr. Pakianathan has served as a Managing Member at Delphi Ventures, a venture capital firm focusing on healthcare investments. From 1998 to 2001, Dr. Pakianathan was a senior biotechnology banker at JP Morgan. Dr. Pakianathan also serves as a member of the board of directors of Alexza Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a publicly traded emerging pharmaceutical company, as well as various private healthcare companies. Dr. Pakianathan received a Ph.D. degree in Immunology and an M.S. degree in Biology from Wake Forest University, and an M.Sc. degree in Biophysics and a B.Sc. degree from the University of Bombay. [CLOSE BIO]
Damion E. Wicker, M.D.
Managing Director, Panorama Capital
Dr. Wicker has served as a member of our board of directors since February 2009. He is a co-founder of Panorama and focuses primarily on life sciences investments. Prior to founding Panorama Capital, Dr. Wicker was a Partner and Co-Head of Life Sciences for JPMorgan Partners. Prior to JPMorgan Partners, Dr. Wicker was president of Adams Scientific and held positions with MBW Venture Partners and Alexon, Inc. He was also a Commonwealth Fund Medical Fellow for the National Institutes of Health.
Dr. Wicker holds a B.S., with honors, from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an M.D. from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Wicker currently serves on the board of directors of Cadent Holdings, Inc., Innovative Spinal Technologies, Powervision, and Phenomix. He is currently on The Board of Trustees of the New York Academy of Medicine and a member of the Investment Committee for the New York Academy of Medicine Endowment. [CLOSE BIO]