Speakers 2022


Oliver Rinner

 

Founder & CEO of Biognosys AG

 

Oliver was a co-founder of Biognosys in 2008 and is leading the company as CEO, starting as a spin-off from ETH Zurich to a market-leading inventor and provider of proteomics technology that Biognosys is today. He holds a diploma in Psychology and Biochemistry from the University of Zurich and did his Ph.D. in psychophysics and behavioral molecular genetics at the ETH Zurich. In his post-doctoral studies in the group of Ruedi Aebersold (ETH), he developed algorithms and methods for quantitative mass spectrometry, which formed the basis for the technology that Biognosys develops today.



Bishoy Hanna

Medical Consultant, Merck

 

Medical Affairs is a function that plays a key role in drug development by generating impactful insights to help shape the company’s medical strategy. In his current position as a consultant working closely with the Global Medical Affairs team at Merck Healthcare KGaA, Bishoy has the chance to contribute to drug development and make an impact on the patients’ journey. Bishoy Hanna is originally from Egypt. He completed his Master’s in 2017 at the MSc/PhD Molecular Biology, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Germany. He was later awarded a Marie-Curie fellowship to pursue his PhD studies in the group of Professor Thomas Helleday at Karolinska Institute, Sweden. During his PhD studies, Bishoy focused on studying the oxidative DNA damage response in cancer and inflammatory conditions and how to exploit it using novel small-molecule inhibitors. Bishoy’s strong scientific background together with his passion for medical affairs enable him to support the development of Merck’s oncology portfolio in the field of DNA damage response (DDR) and ultimately help bring it to the clinic.



Chiara Pastore


Senior Editor, Nature Nanotechnology

 

Chiara has a first degree and a PhD in chemistry, obtained from the University of Pisa and from Scuola Normale Superiore, Pisa. During her PhD she focused on the structural biology and biochemistry of iron binding proteins, carrying out research in Pisa, at EMBL in Heidelberg and at the National Institute for Medical Research in London. She then moved to Columbia University in NYC to work on protein-RNA interactions at then back to the UK, at Imperial College London, where she studied viral proteins. She started her editorial career in October 2015 at Nature Communications and joined Nature Nanotechnology in June 2017, where she handles papers in the areas of nanobiotechnology and nanomedicine. Chiara is based in London.



Marc Gerauer


Patent Attorney, KRAUS & WEISERT2

 

Dr. Gerauer studied chemistry at the Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf and has experience in the field of organic and bioorganic chemistry. He received his doctorate at the University of Dortmund and the Max-Planck-Institute of Molecular Physiology. He has published in several high impact papers, like Celland Nature Chemical Biology. Between 2008 and 2010, Dr. Gerauer was trained in the field of intellectual property at a patent law firm in Düsseldorf. Dr. Gerauer qualified as German Patent Attorney in 2011 and subsequently joined Isenbruck Bösl Hörschler LLP. Dr. Gerauer qualified as European Patent Attorney in 2013 and joined Kraus & Weisert in 2017. For several years now, his primary practice has been focused on patents in the technical fields of organic chemistry, polymers, biochemistry, pharmaceutical chemistry, and related areas. His clients include small and medium-sized biotech businesses and companies in the pharmaceutical industry as well as academia. Dr. Gerauer provides qualified advice in the area of patent and trademark law with particular focus on questions regarding national and international prosecution and the defence and enforcement of protective rights against third parties.



Claudia Walther


 

Advisor, Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds

 

Since 2009 Dr. Claudia Walther is the Managing Director of the Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds, Foundation for Basic Research in Biomedicine, in Mainz (Germany), a non-profit organisation internationally known in particular for its PhD programme and the International Titisee Conferences. In a honorary capacity, she is also responsible for the Siblings Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation for the Humanities; from 2009 to June 2020 she was also Managing Director of the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation. Before joining the three charities, she worked for the vfa in Bonn, the German association of research-based pharmaceutical companies, and for the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg. She pursued her PhD and postdoctoral research in molecular developmental biology with Prof. Peter Gruss at the former Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen (Germany). She studied biology, physics and chemistry at the Universities of Heidelberg and Sussex (UK).



Satya Dash


 

CEO, BITS BioCyTiH Foundation

 

 

Dr. Satya Dash is a national innovation ecosystem designer, technology strategist, policy and implementation expert. He contributed to the growth of Indian biotech & medtech innovation landscape by designing, implementing & driving 17 national programs, when he was the founding Head Strategy at DBT-BIRAC & In-Charge Head of IP & TT, such as BIG (India's largest biotech/medtech program), social innovation (SPARSH), equity (BIRAC SEED & AcE), incubation (BioNEST) & BIRAC-Nesta Discovery Awards & BIRAC-PATH (for IP). Cumulatively more than 2000 startups/innovators & 60 incubators have been supported by the programs. He also built 12 partnerships for BIRAC  (Nesta, WISH Foundation, TiE, Indian Angel Network & others). Previously he was COO ABLE (nodal biotech industry body) and former Director Global Innovations at PATH & Consultant to Nesta. Recently he joined as the Founding CEO of BITS BioCyTiH, hosted by BITS Pilani across 3 campuses & which is funded by the Department of S & T, Government of India to push innovations in bio-cyber-physical systems. He is a Board Member at Venture Center, Pune, India’s largest S&T incubator & advises several startups such as Cygenica and Pandorum & is a Honorary Trustee at Surabhi Foundation (a creative arts focused entity). He holds triple masters from universities of Cambridge (UK), Leicester (UK) & Sambalpur (India) and a PhD from University of East Anglia, UK. His interests are in system design, re-design, re-centering, buffering, pauses, platforms, serendipity & compassion.




Khalil Abou Elardat

Singleron Biotechnology GmbH

 

Dr. Khalil Abou Elardat has been working in the field of biology for 17 years and analyzing next generation data for 9 years. He earned his MSc in biology from the American University of Beirut in 2006 and a PhD in applied biological sciences from Ghent University in 2011. He currently heads the Application Support Department at Singleron Biotechnologies, GmbH. Additionally, Khalil works as a bioinformatician analyzing single-cell RNA sequencing data from various organs and species