Speakers

‍Dr. Stanley H. Appel is the Director of the Johnson Center for Cellular Therapeutics, and the Peggy and Gary Edwards Distinguished Endowed Chair in ALS Research at Houston Methodist Hospital, and Professor of Neurology at Weill Cornell Medical College. He was previously Chief of the Neurology division and the James B. Duke Professor of Medicine at Duke University Medical Center, followed by Chair of the Department of Neurology at Baylor College of Medicine and Chair of the Stanley H. Appel Department of Neurology at Houston Methodist.

Dr. Appel received his bachelor’s degree at Harvard University and his medical degree from Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons. He is Emeritus member of the Board of Directors for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, Chair of the Research Advisory Committee, and a member of the Board of Directors of ALS Therapy Development Institute. He is Director of the MDA/ALSA ALS Research and Clinical Center at Houston Methodist Neurological Institute, and past Director of the National Institute of Aging Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.

He is the author of 15 published books and over 450 articles on ALS, neuromuscular disease, Alzheimer disease, and Parkinson’s disease. He has received numerous awards for his accomplishments in Neurology and Biochemistry, including the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons’ Gold Medal for distinguished achievements in medicine, the American Academy of Neurology’s Sheila Essey Award for outstanding research in ALS, the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Tribute Award, the Alliance of ALS/MND Associations’ Forbes Norris Award for research and treatment in patients with ALS, the Houston Academy of Medicine, and the John P. McGovern Compleat Physician Award for his extraordinary contributions to medicine and humanity.

Research in Dr. Appel’s laboratory has focused on the role of neuroinflammation in neurodegenerative diseases. In Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Parkinson Disease, Alzheimer Disease, and FTD,  neuroprotective regulatory T lymphocytes (Treg) are dysfunctional, and activated macrophages/microglia promote neuroinflammation. Expansion of Tregs ex vivo restores the suppressive functions, and formed the basis of two clinical trials of autologous infusions of expanded Tregs. Trials have also used in vivo injections of Combination Therapies to expand Tregs and suppress pro-inflammatory myeloid cells in neurodegenerative diseases. These recent clinical trials support the promising benefit of Treg therapy.

Dr. Howard Berman is currently the Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Coya Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: COYA), a clinical stage biotechnology company that is developing disease modifying therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s Disease), Frontotemporal Dementia, Parkinson’s Disease, and Alzheimer’s Disease. He founded the company in 2021 after meeting Dr. Stanley Appel and learning the correlative and possibly causative link between regulatory T cell (Treg) dysfunction and neurodegeneration. The company is developing combination biologic immunotherapies to enhance Treg function and mitigate pro-inflammatory signals that aim to target multiple dysfunctional pathways that underlie complex disease pathophysiology.  He has raised over $75 Million through private, public, and non-dilutive rounds and, as a first time CEO, spearheaded the company’s Initial Public Offering (IPO) in January 2023 on to NASDAQ in one of the more difficult biotech markets in many years. In its first year as a public company, he successfully engineered a company transformative licensing deal with a strategic pharmaceutical company in excess of $700 Million in deal value. He is also the founder of Imaware, Inc., a digital health company (founded alongside with McNair Interests) that is at the forefront of remote testing of multiple disease conditions. Howard has 20 years of drug development and medical affairs expertise at pharmaceutical companies actively participating in the launch of numerous blockbuster drugs at Novartis (Focalin XR®), Eli Lilly (Alimta®), Morphosys (Monjuvi®), and AbbVie (Venclexta®). His passions include identifying and commercializing novel biotechnology assets, venture capital, and biotechnology investing. He has a Masters and PhD in Neuropharmacology from Weill Cornell Medical College.

Dr. Joel Braunstein is Co-Founder and CEO of C₂N Diagnostics and has led the company's growth and commercial efforts since its inception. Dr. Braunstein has played a senior executive role in numerous emerging life sciences companies since 2004. He received his M.D. with Highest Distinction from Northwestern University Medical School in 1996. Subsequently, he trained in internal medicine at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and was a Fellow in Cardiovascular Medicine and Robert Wood Johnson National Clinical Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. Additionally, he completed an MBA with management and health policy focus and maintained an Assistant Professorship in Cardiology at Johns Hopkins University. In 2010, he was named a Distinguished Alumnus of Johns Hopkins University.

Dr. Aaron Burstein serves as Head of Search and Evaluation at the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation managing a team of scientists responsible for the Therapeutics Portfolio (i.e., Drug Development, Neuroimaging and CSF Biomarkers). 

Dr. Burstein earned his BS Pharmacy and PharmD degrees from the State University of New York at Buffalo. He subsequently completed a fellowship in Clinical Neuropharmacology focused on investigational treatments for neurological disorders including epilepsy and stroke, as well as on pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic mathematical modeling techniques. He is a Fellow of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy.  

Dr. Burstein’s career includes 28 years in clinical research and development across academia, the National Institutes of Health, and the pharmaceutical industry. He has 20+ years’ experience in the pharmaceutical industry serving most recently as Senior Vice President of Clinical Development at vTv Therapeutics. Prior to that, Dr. Burstein served as Senior Director at Pfizer, where he served various positions of increasing responsibility within Clinical Research, Clinical Development and Developmental Operations organizations, with a focus on investigational products for CNS indications including Alzheimer’s disease.

Dr. Jeffrey Cummings is globally known for his contributions to Alzheimer’s research, drug development, and clinical trials. He has been recognized for his research and leadership contributions in the field of Alzheimer’s disease through many awards including the Ronald and Nancy Reagan Research Award of the national Alzheimer’s Association (2008), Lifetime Achievement Award of the Society for Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology (2017), Distinguished Scientist Award of the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatry (2010), Bengt Winblad Lifetime Achievement Award from the national Alzheimer’s Association (2019), and the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation’s Melvin R. Goodes Prize. He was featured in the Gentleman’s Quarterly (June 2009) as a “Rock Star of Science™.” Dr. Cummings completed Neurology residency and a Fellowship in Behavioral Neurology at Boston University, followed by a Research Fellowship in Neuropathology and Neuropsychiatry at the National Hospital for Nervous Diseases, Queen Square, London. Dr. Cummings was formerly Director of the Mary S. Easton Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research at UCLA, and Director of the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health. Dr. Cummings’ interests embrace clinical trials, developing new therapies for brain diseases, and the interface of neuroscience and society. He has authored or edited 43 books and published over 800 peer-reviewed papers.

Dr. Howard Fillit is a geriatrician, neuroscientist, and innovative philanthropy executive, who has led the ADDF since its founding. Dr. Fillit has held faculty positions at The Rockefeller University, the SUNY-Stony Brook School of Medicine and the Cornell University School of Medicine. In 1987, he joined the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, where he is a clinical professor of geriatric medicine and palliative care, medicine and neuroscience. Dr. Fillit also maintains a limited private practice in consultative geriatric medicine with a focus on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

He has authored or co-authored more than 300 publications and is the senior editor of Brocklehurst’s Textbook of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology. Dr. Fillit is the recipient of many awards and honors including the Rita Hayworth Award from the Alzheimer’s Association. He is a fellow of the American Geriatrics Society, the American College of Physicians, the Gerontological Society of America and the New York Academy of Medicine. Dr. Fillit earned his bachelor of arts in neurobiology cum laude from Cornell University and his medical degree from the SUNY-Upstate Medical University.

Dr. Charles Finsterwald is the co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) of GliaPharm. A neuroscientist by training, Dr. Finsterwald specializes in molecular, cellular and cognitive neuroscience. He holds a PhD in neuroscience from the Lemanic Neuroscience Doctoral School in Switzerland, where he first got interested in the role of neurotrophic factors during brain development.

Following his doctoral studies, Dr. Finsterwald pursued postdoctoral research in Prof. Cristina Alberini’s laboratory at NYU, supported by a fellowship from the Swiss National Science Foundation. His work there explored the intricate mechanisms by which varying levels of stress influence memory consolidation, from beneficial effects at moderate levels to the development of pathologies such as post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD) under extreme conditions.

Dr. Finsterwald then joined the laboratory of Prof. Pierre Magistretti at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL, Switzerland), where he focused on pioneering therapeutic strategies targeting astrocytic metabolism in neurological disorders. This innovative research led to the identification of novel classes of compounds and the founding of GliaPharm in 2016 to further advance these promising therapies.

In addition to his scientific expertise, Dr. Finsterwald has strong foundation in project management, having completed his studies at NYU, and has specialized in managing start-up and biotechnology ventures at EPFL.

Dr. Georgia Frost joined SV in 2023 and is a Senior Associate on the DDF investment team. Prior to joining SV, Georgia worked as a life science consultant at EmPartners where she assessed competitive threat for pre-clinical through phase III assets and provided strategic insights across the product life cycle.

Before joining EmPartners, Georgia was a Postdoctoral Fellow in Dr Yueming Li's lab at the Sloan Kettering Institute, where she investigated the interplay between inflammation and amyloid beta in Alzheimer’s disease. Georgia received a PhD in Neuroscience from Weill Cornell Medicine and has published in high impact journals (Nature, PNAS, Neuron, and Science Translational Medicine).

Georgia received a PhD in Neuroscience from Weill Cornell Medicine, and a BSc in Neuroscience (with a minor in Economics) from Allegheny College.

Dr. Ralph Kern is currently Chief Medical Officer at Cognito Therapeutics. Previously he was President and Chief Medical Officer at BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics. Prior industry experience includes SVP and head of the global medical organization at Biogen; VP and head of the US Neuroscience Medical Unit at Novartis; and General Manager of the Fabrazyme biologics franchise at Genzyme.

Prior to joining the biotechnology industry, Ralph was head of the academic neurology program at the University of Toronto and led the clinical neurophysiology department at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto.

Ralph completed undergraduate education in neurophysiology at McGill University in Montreal Quebec, an MD from Queens’ University in Kingston Ontario, post-graduate neurology training at McGill University and the University College London UK, as well as a research fellowship in pediatric epilepsy and EEG at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. Ralph completed the MHSc program in Health Administration from the Institute of Health Policy Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto in 2003.

Dr. Miia Kivipelto is Professor of Clinical Geriatrics at Karolinska Institutet (KI), Center for Alzheimer Research, and senior geriatrician and Director for Research & Development of Theme Aging at Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden. Part of her Nordic-UK Brain Network (NBN) multidisciplinary research team (around 100 researchers and clinical staff) is located at University of Eastern Finland and Imperial College London (ICL), UK, where she has part time position as Professor. Her frontline research findings have been published in leading journals 400+ publications, H-index 83) and she has received numerous prestigious national and international awards. 

Dr. Kivipelto’s translational research focuses on the prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of cognitive impairment, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Through epidemiological studies, Prof. Kivipelto has identified various lifestyle and vascular risk factors for dementia and interactions with genetic factors and clarified underlying mechanisms. She has developed the first tool for predicting dementia risk based on midlife risk profiles. This is still one of the few validated risk scores in the field and is in clinical use (including clinical trials). These findings paved the way to the current prevention trials. 

Professor Kivipelto is the PI of the landmark FINGER Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) (Finnish Geriatric Intervention Study to Prevent Cognitive Impairment and Disability), which is the first large-scale trial showing that a multi-domain lifestyle-based intervention can reduce the risk of cognitive and functional impairment among at risk persons from general population. FINGER has caused a paradigm shift, i.e. cognitive decline is no longer an inevitable consequence of aging, but can be prevented with multidomain interventions. This pragmatic model is now tested and adapted worldwide, and Professor Kivipelto has launched the World Wide FINGERS network, a unique interdisciplinary network to share experiences, harmonize data, and plan joint international initiatives for the prevention of cognitive impairment/dementia (45 countries currently involved). She is also founder of the FINGERS Brain Health Institute aiming to find novel solutions to promote brain health and prevent cognitive impairment and dementia. 

Professor Kivipelto has also contributed to understanding of biological mechanisms underlying dementia/AD and she is actively involved in phase I-III clinical trials and is leading several international consortia. She has received numerous of prestigious awards, including Forska!Sverige Research Award (2022), Melvin R. Goodes Prize, USA (2021) for excellence in drug discovery (for FINGER concept), the Ryman Prize, New Zealand (2020), Arthur C. Cherkin Award, USA (2019), Swedish Doctoral Union Alzheimer prize (2018), Neuroscientist of the Year (Finland,2018), MetLife Foundation Major Award for Medical Research (2016), Swedish Alzheimer Research Foundation Major Award (2016), Waijlit and Eric Forsgren’s award for dementia researcher (2015), Best PI at KI award (2014) and AXA Research Award (2014), Karolinska Institutet Skandia’s Lennart Levi prize (2013), Junior Chamber International Award for Ten Outstanding Young Persons of the World (2011), and the Academy of Finland Award for Social Impact (2009).

Dr. Susan Kohlhaas is Executive Director of Research and Partnerships at Alzheimer’s Research UK where she oversees the charity’s research strategy and program, including strategic initiatives on developing new treatment targets, early detection and supporting research infrastructure. She has a PhD in cancer biology from the University of Leicester and completed postdoctoral work in the field of immunology at the Babraham Institute in Cambridge.

Susan’s previous roles include work in the area of multiple sclerosis, as Executive Director of Research and External Affairs at the MS Society where she worked as part of a global initiatives on progressive MS, developed and implemented plans for a large-scale clinical trials program and worked to ensure innovations in research were implemented into clinical practice.

Dr. Eric McDade is Professor of Neurology at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. His research interests include the application of cerebrospinal fluid and neuroimaging measures to identify early pathology of Alzheimer’s disease with the ultimate goal of identifying early markers of Alzheimer’s disease progression that can be used in testing disease modifying therapies. 

Dr. McDade serves as the Co-Director of the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer’s Disease Trials Unit and the Clinical Core Leader of the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network Observational Study where he and his colleagues are using a global, natural history study to develop prevention trials to in Dominantly Inherited AD. As part of this work he has co-lead an initiative to comprehensively study the changes of soluble tau-related biomarkers and is the Principle Investigator of the first ever primary prevention trial in familial Alzheimer disease which will test whether preventing the development of amyloid plaques will prevent the development of dementia in those with a genetic form of the Alzheimer’s disease that leads to young-onset dementia.

Dr. Laura Nisenbaum is a proven scientific leader with 30 years of biotechnology industry and academia experience. At the ADDF, she oversees the Scientific Affairs, Biomarker Development, and Aging and Alzheimer’s Prevention teams.

Most recently, Dr. Nisenbaum served as Senior Director of Aducanumab Biomarkers and Diagnostic Pathways at Biogen, where she led the biomarker strategy for Aducanumab, as well as the Diagnostics Pathway group within the Biomarker Organization.

Her time at Biogen followed 20 years of experience at Eli Lilly and Company where she served as Asset Manager for Chorus, an autonomous early-phase clinical development organization within Lilly. Dr. Nisenbaum also served as Research Fellow and neuroscience lead in tailored therapeutics, translational medicine, and preclinical drug discovery.

Prior to joining the biotechnology field, Dr. Nisenbaum received a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Cologne, Germany. She then completed her PhD in neuroscience in 1991 at the University of Pittsburgh and transitioned to industry after completing postdoctoral training at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the University of Tennessee College of Medicine, and a faculty position in Physiology and Neurobiology at the University of Connecticut.

Throughout her career, Dr. Nisenbaum has contributed to the discovery and development of more than 15 novel therapeutics, bringing three molecules for FDA approval.

Dr. Miranda Orr’s research focuses on cellular stress responses at the intersection between healthy brain aging and neurodegeneration. She earned a PhD in Neuroscience from Montana State University, specializing in mechanisms of tau pathogenes is using Alzheimer’s disease stem cell and mouse models. 

Her postdoctoral training focused on the biology of aging and translational geroscience at the Sam and Ann Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies in San Antonio, TX. Her laboratory discovered a link between intraneuronal tau accumulation, a defining neuropathology in Alzheimer’s disease, and cellular senescence, a hallmark of aging. This seminal study established senescent cells as a therapeutic target for neurodegenerative diseases and helped ignite a new field of study. She has translated this finding to clinical testing where she is leading a multisite Phase II trial targeting senescent cell clearance in older adults with mild cognitive impairment or early Alzheimer’s disease. For this work, she received the 2022 Melvin R. Goodes Prize for Excellence in Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery from the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation and was featured in the January and September 2023 issues of National Geographic for identifying, imaging, and therapeutically targeting senescent cells in Alzheimer’s disease.

Mark Roithmayr is an admired nonprofit leader with four decades of experience in both start-ups and mature organizations. At the ADDF, Mr. Roithmayr is responsible for steering the Foundation’s overall strategy, focus, and business operations. Since joining the ADDF in 2017, the organization has transformed dramatically in impact, scale, presence, and brand. Under his leadership, the ADDF’s revenue has increased five-fold from $17M to an excess of $90M and mission related investing has grown over 100%.

As such, Mr. Roithmayr sets the strategic vision of the ADDF and works in partnership with the Co-Founder and CSO, Howard Fillit, MD, Executive Leadership, and the Board of Governors and Overseers to advance and execute the Foundation’s mission of accelerating the discovery of drugs to prevent, treat, and cure Alzeimer’s disease and related dementias. His areas of expertise and focus include venture philanthropy, strategic planning, volunteer development, and brand-building. One of Mr. Roithmayr’s milestone accomplishments was securing Bill Gates, as well as Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Scott, as donors to further the Foundation’s venture philanthropy efforts. Additionally, he secured a 10-figure gift from the families of Leonard and Ronald Lauder, ensuring all overhead costs will be covered at the ADDF for the next two decades.

Prior to joining the ADDF, Mr. Roithmayr was Chief Relationship Officer at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. There, he helped launch its venture philanthropy initiative, directed its 56 national chapters, and led annual fundraising of over $200 million. Prior his time at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, he served for seven years as president of Autism Speaks. As that organization’s first president, he shepherded its growth from a start-up into the world’s largest autism research and advocacy organization. Earlier in his career, Mr. Roithmayr held several executive positions, spanning two decades, with the March of Dimes. He earned a bachelor’s degree in communications at Rowan University.

Dr. Philip Scheltens is Head of the Dementia Fund and partner at EQT Life Sciences. Before joining EQT, Dr. Scheltens worked as founder and Director of the Alzheimer Center at Amsterdam University Medical Center in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. He is an MD (neurology) and holds a PhD in Medicine from the VU University Amsterdam and is currently Emeritus Professor of Neurology at Amsterdam University Medical Centers.