Allan D. Kirk, MD
Chair, Board of Directors
Dr. Kirk is the David C. Sabiston, Jr. Distinguished Professor of Surgery, Pediatrics and Immunology at the Duke University School of Medicine. He serves as the Chairman of the Department of Surgery for the Duke University School of Medicine and as the Surgeon-in-Chief of the Duke University Health System. He is also Editor-in-Chief for the American Journal of Transplantation. Dr. Kirk received his MD and PhD in immunology at Duke, completed a general surgery residency at Duke in 1995, and completed a multi-organ transplant fellowship at the University of Wisconsin in 1997. He served in the US Navy, at the NIH and at Emory University prior to returning to Duke.
Dani P. Bolognesi, PhD
Principal and Chair, Technology Review Committee
MedBlue Incubator, Inc.
Dr. Bolognesi’s career spans all phases of drug development, and he has held a number of senior management positions, which include: CEO and Chief Scientific Officer, Trimeris, Inc., a publicly traded biotechnology company that successfully developed and co-marketed HIV drug, Fuzeon®, with Roche; CEO and Chairman of b3bio, Inc; CEO, Enci Therapeutics, Inc.; and CEO, C2 Regenerate, Inc.
Dr. Bolognesi’s scientific career spans three decades, during which he has held a number of positions at Duke University including: James B. Duke Professor of Surgery (current position), Professor of Microbiology/Immunology, Vice Chairman for Research and Development – Department of Surgery, Deputy Director of the Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Director of the Duke University Center for AIDS Research. While at Duke, Dr. Bolognesi and his research team contributed to the discovery of AZT (the first anti-HIV drug), identified the HIV protein targeted by fusion inhibitor drugs, and established a central laboratory that supported all HIV vaccine clinical trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. He also directed the NIH Central Laboratory for AIDS Vaccine Clinical Trials.
Robert R. Bonczek, MBA, JD
President and Chief Financial Officer, MedBlue Incubator, Inc.
Mr. Bonczek has been instrumental in helping companies through IPOs, secondary equity offerings, private placements, transactional advice for M&As, strategic planning, and collaboration agreements. He has served as President, Director, CFO and General Counsel of b3 bio, Inc.; CFO, General Counsel and Chief Administrative Officer of Trimeris, Inc.; and Chief Counsel and Global Director of Safety, Health and Environment, Dupont.
Mr. Bonczek is founding partner, Director and President of Aspen Tree Capital. He also serves on the boards of several other life science-related companies including NeurOp, Inc., Senex Biotechnology, Upstream Therapeutics, Inc., Deep Blue Medical Advances, Inc., Track X Technology, Cellective Biotherapy, Inc., and Istari Oncology, Inc. He also serves on advisory boards for several companies, including Valence Advantage Life Sciences Fund, and Centre Partners. Mr. Bonczek received an AB in chemistry and a JD degree from the University of North Carolina. He also holds an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Jiaoti Huang, MD, PhD
Dr. Huang is the Chair of the Department of Pathology in the Duke University School of Medicine. He is currently Professor of Pathology and Urology, the Frances and Albert Piansky Endowed Chair, Chief of Surgical Pathology and Director of Urologic Pathology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Dr. Huang is a member of UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Biology. He is a nationally and internationally renowned surgical pathologist and prostate cancer researcher.
Dr. Huang earned his medical degree from Anhui Medical University and a master’s degree in pharmacology from the Institute of Radiation Medicine in Beijing. He earned his PhD from New York University School of Medicine. He was a Leukemia Society of America Postdoctoral Fellow at NYU and Yale University. He completed his residency training in pathology at NYU School of Medicine and a fellowship in Oncologic Surgical Pathology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
Kathleen Ann Cooney, MD
Dr. Cooney is the chair of the Department of Medicine in the Duke University School of Medicine. She is also a Professor of Medicine, and a member of the Duke Cancer Institute. at the Duke University School of Medicine. Dr. Cooney earned medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and completed her residency as well as a fellowship at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor,.
Oliver Sherrill
Mr. Sherrill is Vice President, Regional Market Director of the Research Triangle Park region at Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE:ARE), the largest and leading REIT focused on collaborative science and technology campuses in AAA innovation cluster locations. In his role at Alexandria, Mr. Sherrill is responsible for operations and management of the Research Triangle Park portfolio. These responsibilities include leasing, acquisitions, facilities management, market analysis, project feasibility, financial modeling, team selection, project management, tenant improvements, development and redevelopment projects, and managing the Research Triangle Park cluster’s asset services team to ensure the highest level of client tenant satisfaction. Since joining Alexandria in 2000, Mr. Sherrill has managed a portfolio of life science properties totaling approximately one million square feet, and completed over 1,000,000 square feet of development/redevelopment projects, including numerous complex life science and specialized high-tech projects. Prior to joining Alexandria, Mr. Sherrill was with Manekin, LLC in Baltimore, Maryland, where he successfully managed a portfolio of high-rise Class A commercial properties. Mr. Sherrill received his BS in Business Administration from the University of Maryland.
Joseph P. Mathew, MD, MHSc, MBA
Dr. Mathew received his medical degree from Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, TX, and completed his residency in anesthesiology and a fellowship in cardiovascular anesthesiology at Yale University School of Medicine. He spent eight years at Yale University School of Medicine where he served as Associate Professor of Anesthesiology, Co-Director of the Cardiovascular Anesthesia Fellowship, Director of the Transesophageal Echocardiography Imaging Program, and Associate Chief of the Section of Cardio-thoracic Anesthesiology.
In 1998, Dr. Mathew joined the faculty at Duke and has since served as director of the Perioperative Transesophageal Echocardiography (TEE), director of the Neurological Outcome Research Group and the Clinical Research Unit, Chief of the Division of Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology, and most recently as Executive Vice Chair of Performance and Operations for the Department of Anesthesiology. Dr. Mathew is an active physician-scientist funded by the National Institutes of Health for research on perioperative neurocognition and functional neuronal connectivity, particularly in the setting of cardiac surgery. He has published over 200 manuscripts and book chapters and is the editor of the leading textbook on perioperative TEE. He is also the current president of the Association of Cardiac Anesthesiologists and was recently elected into the Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research’s Academy of Research Mentors. He was appointed as Chair of the Duke Department of Anesthesiology at Duke University Medical Center in March of 2015 and holds the position of Jerry Reves Professor of Anesthesiology.
Robin Rasor, MS, CLP
A recent arrival to Duke as Executive Director of Office of Licensing & Ventures, Ms. Rasor oversees all functions of the tech transfer process at the University. Previously, Ms. Rasor was Managing Director of Licensing at the University of Michigan where she oversaw the licensing process ranging from management and marketing of disclosures to developing and negotiating appropriate licensing terms for license agreements, and finally to maintaining and monitoring existing agreements. Ms. Rasor’s is also a former Director of Licensing at The Ohio State University and former employee of Battelle Columbus Laboratories, a leading US contract research firm.
Ms. Rasor has a MS in Genetics from The Ohio State University and a BS in Bacteriology and Zoology from Ohio Wesleyan University. She has earned the CLP (Certified Licensing Professional) credential and is past President and Chair of the Board of Governors of Certified Licensing Professionals, Inc. Ms. Rasor is a Past President of the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) Board of Trustees. She has also served on the Board of Directors, most recently as Treasurer, of the Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce. In 2005, she was awarded the President’s Award for service to AUTM. In 2007, Ms. Rasor was part of the team headed by Michigan’s Dr. Arul Chinnaiyan honored by The American Association for Cancer Research in its first annual AACR Team Science Award.
John H. Sampson, MD, PhD, MBA
Dr. Sampson is Chief of the Division of Neurosurgery in the Duke University School of Medicine. He is also the Dr. Robert H. Wilkins and Gloria Wilkins Professor of Neurosurgery, a Professor of Biomedical Engineering, a Professor of Immunology, a Professor of Pathology, a Professor of Radiation Oncology, and Associate Deputy Director of the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at the Duke University School of Medicine. He completed his medical school in Canada and was recruited to the Duke University Neurosurgery residency program. After completing the program, he was asked to stay on as a senior staff member in the Division of Neurosurgery. Dr. Sampson has also received an MBA from the Duke University Fuqua School of Business.
Yupeng Song
Mr. Song is currently a founding partner and Chief Executive Officer of Longview International Holdings, Pte. Ltd. He has lead Longview’s entry into the fields of health/medical science, and has strategic relationships, in both the U.S. and China.
Benjamin A. Alman, MD
Dr. Alman is the Chair of Orthopaedic Surgery, James R. Urbaniak, MD, Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Professor in Cell Biology, Professor in Pediatrics, and Professor in the Department of Pathology in the Duke University School of Medicine.