Board Committees

Edward Smith has been a director since April 2020 and brings more than 20 years of experience in executive finance and operations leadership in the biotechnology industry to our Board. Mr. Smith presently serves as Chief Financial Officer of Reunion Neuroscience, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on treating depression and other mental health disorders. Prior to joining Reunion, Mr. Smith served as CFO and took public LAVA Therapeutics N.V. (Nasdaq: LVTX), Marinus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: MRNS) and PolyMedix, Inc. (Nasdaq: PYMX). Prior to that, he was executive director of finance at InKine Pharmaceutical Company, Inc., now part of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. Earlier in his career, he held various positions of increasing responsibility in public accounting, most recently in the audit practice at Deloitte.

J. Kevin Buchi has been a Director since April 2013. Mr. Buchi previously served as Chief Executive Officer of BioSpecifics Technologies Corp. and of TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Mr. Buchi served as Chief Executive Officer of Cephalon, Inc., or Cephalon, from December 2010 through its acquisition by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd in October 2011. After the acquisition Mr. Buchi served as Corporate Vice President, Global Branded Products of Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. Mr. Buchi joined Cephalon in 1991 and held various positions, including Chief Operating Officer, from January 2010 to December 2010, Chief Financial Officer and Head of Business Development prior to being appointed Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Buchi is also on the board of directors of Amneal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMRX). Mr. Buchi has a B.A. in chemistry from Cornell University and a Masters in Management from Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Peter Francis has been a director since February 2006 and was previously Chairman of the Board until October 2017. Since 1993, Mr. Francis has been a partner at Francis Abourizk Lightowlers, a firm of commercial and technology lawyers with offices in Melbourne, Australia. He is a legal specialist in the areas of intellectual property and licensing and provides legal advice to corporations and research bodies. Mr. Francis completed his studies in law and jurisprudence at Monash University.

Peter Francis has been a director since February 2006 and was previously Chairman of the Board until October 2017. Since 1993, Mr. Francis has been a partner at Francis Abourizk Lightowlers, a firm of commercial and technology lawyers with offices in Melbourne, Australia. He is a legal specialist in the areas of intellectual property and licensing and provides legal advice to corporations and research bodies. Mr. Francis completed his studies in law and jurisprudence at Monash University.

Dr. Sharon Mates served as the Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and Co-founder of Intra-Cellular Therapies Inc. (ITI) from June 2002 until its acquisition by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). Intra-Cellular Therapies focused on developing medicines for mental health disorders like bipolar disorder, depression and schizophrenia and received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its novel antipsychotic CAPLYTA^® in 2019 prior to its 2025 acquisition for approximately $14.6 billion by JNJ. She has served on several not-for-profit boards. Dr. Mates is also a director of Medincell, a biopharmaceutical company in France (Euronext: MEDCL). Dr. Mates received a B.S. from Ohio State University, a Ph.D. from the University of Washington and completed her postdoctoral fellowships at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School.

Edward Smith has been a director since April 2020 and brings more than 20 years of experience in executive finance and operations leadership in the biotechnology industry to our Board. Mr. Smith presently serves as Chief Financial Officer of Reunion Neuroscience, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on treating depression and other mental health disorders. Prior to joining Reunion, Mr. Smith served as CFO and took public LAVA Therapeutics N.V. (Nasdaq: LVTX), Marinus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: MRNS) and PolyMedix, Inc. (Nasdaq: PYMX). Prior to that, he was executive director of finance at InKine Pharmaceutical Company, Inc., now part of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. Earlier in his career, he held various positions of increasing responsibility in public accounting, most recently in the audit practice at Deloitte.

Peter Francis has been a director since February 2006 and was previously Chairman of the Board until October 2017. Since 1993, Mr. Francis has been a partner at Francis Abourizk Lightowlers, a firm of commercial and technology lawyers with offices in Melbourne, Australia. He is a legal specialist in the areas of intellectual property and licensing and provides legal advice to corporations and research bodies. Mr. Francis completed his studies in law and jurisprudence at Monash University.

Mr. Mehta has over 15 years of experience in the financial industry and is currently Chief Investment Officer, Averill Strategies at Suvretta Capital Management, LLC, where he is focused on the firm’s healthcare investment strategies. Mr. Mehta currently sits on the Board of Directors of Biohaven Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: BHVN), where he was a strategic adviser on various business development, capital structure and communication strategies. Prior to Biohaven, Mr. Mehta was a portfolio manager at Surveyor Capital, a Citadel LLC strategy, focused on global small-, mid- and large-capitalization biotechnology, pharmaceutical, specialty pharmaceutical, medical device and healthcare services companies. Prior to Surveyor, Mr. Mehta was an analyst at Adage Capital where he evaluated and participated in numerous mezzanine and pre-IPO private healthcare investments. Mr. Mehta held a similar role at Apothecary Capital and started his career as a mergers and acquisitions analyst at Evercore Partners, where he focused on life sciences. Mr. Mehta graduated from New York University with a degree in finance and accounting.

J. Kevin Buchi has been a Director since April 2013. Mr. Buchi previously served as Chief Executive Officer of BioSpecifics Technologies Corp. and of TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Mr. Buchi served as Chief Executive Officer of Cephalon, Inc., or Cephalon, from December 2010 through its acquisition by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd in October 2011. After the acquisition Mr. Buchi served as Corporate Vice President, Global Branded Products of Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. Mr. Buchi joined Cephalon in 1991 and held various positions, including Chief Operating Officer, from January 2010 to December 2010, Chief Financial Officer and Head of Business Development prior to being appointed Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Buchi is also on the board of directors of Amneal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMRX). Mr. Buchi has a B.A. in chemistry from Cornell University and a Masters in Management from Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Dr. Sharon Mates served as the Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and Co-founder of Intra-Cellular Therapies Inc. (ITI) from June 2002 until its acquisition by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). Intra-Cellular Therapies focused on developing medicines for mental health disorders like bipolar disorder, depression and schizophrenia and received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its novel antipsychotic CAPLYTA^® in 2019 prior to its 2025 acquisition for approximately $14.6 billion by JNJ. She has served on several not-for-profit boards. Dr. Mates is also a director of Medincell, a biopharmaceutical company in France (Euronext: MEDCL). Dr. Mates received a B.S. from Ohio State University, a Ph.D. from the University of Washington and completed her postdoctoral fellowships at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School.