Mike Eaton worked in research in the Pharma industry for more than 35 years. Initially at GD Searle, where he built the first synthetic gene for Urogastrone and sequenced human fibroblast interferon. He was a founding member of Celltech in 1980; later acquired by UCB. He has worked on a number of marketed drugs – Mylotarg in 2000, the first Antibody drug conjugate and Certolizumab Pegol in 2009, the first PEGylated antibody. Unusually he has worked with both small molecules and large molecules, including DNA.

He built the first automated DNA synthesiser in Europe, which is now owned by the Science Museum in London. This machine was used for the first cloning of pre-prochymosin, a key ingredient in cheesemaking.

He has worked on low molecular weight drugs including the first non-emetic PDEIV inhibitor. Mike is a special professor at Nottingham University and was an executive board member of the European Technology Platform for Nanomedicine, at its inception in 2005. He left UCB in February 2010 and is now a strategic and technical adviser to a number of companies. His particular interest is commercial translation of nanotechnology research to nanomedicines – medicines to help patients.

His article Delivering Nanomedicines to Patients: A Practical Guide, Mike A.W. Eaton, Laurent Levy, Olivier M.A. Fontaine, Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine, May 2015 Volume 11, Issue 4, Pages 983–992 is an important reference for developers.

Nuno Sá Costa is a lawyer at the JPAB lawyer’s society. Graduated in Law by the Faculty of Law of the University of Coimbra, specializing in Tax Law.

Nuno Sousa (MD, PhD) is Full Professor at the School of Health Science,University of Minho. He is the President of the School of Medicine at University of Minho. He serves at several medical education and medical assessment advisoryboards.

He is a NeuroRadiologist. Presently, he is the Director of the Clinical Academic Center at Hospital de Braga. He coordinates and is involved in several national and international research projects.

He is the Coordinator of the Neuroscience Research Domain at ICVS/University of Minho. His research main interests are focused in the establishment of functional and structural correlations mediated by stress and aging and its implications in cognition and in neuropsychiatric disorders. Detailed assessment of neuroplastic events, incorporation of newly generatedcells into neuronal networks, rearrangements of established dendritic andsynaptic contacts, combined with behavioural, neurochemical and eletrophysiogical, molecular biology and (epi)genetics correlates have been established in his laboratory; the work from the lab covers from basic to clinical research and several modulatory interventions have also been described in order to promote recovery of structure and function in neuronal tissues.

Nuno Sousa has published more than 300 peer-reviewed research articles (H-factor=54, >10000 citations). In addition to academic merits, Nuno Sousa serves on several science policy and advisory board positions, and as an Ad hoc reviewerfor various neuroscience journal and international funding organizations. He is Editor-in-Chief of Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience and Member of the Editorial Board of Molecular Neurodegeneration, Neurobiology of Stress and Neuropharmacology.

From 2011-15 Nuno Sousa was the President of the Portuguese Society for Neuroscience.
From 2014-2016, he was the President of the Scientific Council of Health and Life Sciences at FCT.

MD, PhD, Founder and CEO of CGC Genetics since 1992.

Specialist in Clinical Genetics of the Portuguese Medical Association and Professor of Medical Genetics.

Member of the Board of the College of Medical Genetics of the Portuguese Medical Association.

Experience in the application of Medical Genetics to improve accurate diagnostics, early detection and prevention in Prenatal Diagnosis, Cancer, Rare Diseases and Chronic Diseases in Adults.

Has been proactive in turning Medical Genetics into a fundamental tool to all medical specialties.

Awarded in the field of Quality, Innovation and Enterprise, including the Merit Gold Medal of the City of Porto (2009), Ernst & Young Emerging Entrepreneur (2010), City of Newark New Jersey Entrepreneurship (2011), the Best Leader Award (2013), and honored in 2012 with the Degree of Grand Officer of the Industrial Merit Order, by the President of the Portuguese Republic.

Ted Parton is a consultant to international pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical research and development, with 30 years’ experience in drug metabolism, bioanalysis, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and safety evaluation, from concept to post-marketing support. With a BA in Natural Sciences (Chemistry) from Cambridge and a PhD in natural product chemistry from Southampton, he has broad knowledge of a wide variety of technologies.

In eight years at Upjohn and 21 years at Celltech/UCB, he worked in most therapeutic areas and gained insight into many of the difficulties that patients, scientists, clinicians and executives face. He has worked on small molecule and biologic projects. He is first author on a patent for a kinase inhibitor in development (seletalisib) and has extensive experience of the in vivo properties of high molecular weight PEG. Through his involvement in Due Diligence for both in-licensing and out-licensing projects, he has investigated and assessed many technological developments.

Stephan Lensky is a consultant to the international biotech industry. He brings more than 20 years of experience in Pharma companies, more than 15 years of experience in business development, and more than 5 years of international leadership to start-ups. Currently he is acting as a Chief Operating and Chief Business Officer of EpimAb Biotherapeutics, Inc., a start-up based in Shanghai, China. Prior to being a consultant, Stephan was a Corporate Vice President at Boehringer Ingelheim, located in Germany, with additional groups reporting to him in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and Tokyo. His Department was globally responsible for the negotiation and management of all strategic transactions. He also worked in various areas of research as well as in marketing & sales during his years at Boehringer Ingelheim and Bayer Health Care. Stephan holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry.